Juiv.ef  ill.  Library 

51 

■ V,  .SWK 


X-N  \ U 


'©STF 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign  Alternates 


https://archive.org/details/martyrsofmutinyoOOjenk 


Trial  of  Gopee-uauth  Nundy  at  Allahabad. 


MARTYRS 


THE  MUTINY; 

OR, 

TRIALS  AND  TRIUMPHS  OF  CHRISTIANS  IN  THE  SEPOY 
REBELLION  IN  INDIA. 


®tit|j  an  Introduction 

BY  THE 

REV.  JOHN  JENKINS,  D.D. 


“ The  noble  army  of  martyrs  praise  thee.” 


PHILADELPHIA: 

|)re$bgtrrian  publication  Committee, 

1334  CHESTNUT  ST. 

New  York : A.  D.  F.  Randolph,  683  Broadway. 
Cincinnati:  "Wm.  Scott... Detroit:  F.  Raymond... Chicago:  W.  Tomlinsos. 
St.  Louis : J.  W.  McIntyrk. 

1860. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1860,  by 
WILLIAM  PURVES,  Treasurer, 
in  trust  for  the 

PRESBYTERIAN  PUBLICATION  COMMITTEE, 

in  the  Clerk’s  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 
Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania. 


STEREOTYPED  BY  L.  JOHNSON  & CO. 
PHILADELPHIA. 


£.  H UJoJLJ-js 


NOTE  BY  THE  COMPILER 

The  materials  of  which  this  volume  is 
composed  are  from  many  sources : the  main 
obligation  is  to  a small  volume  published  in 
London  by  the  Rev.  Wm.  Owen,  entitled 
“ Memorials  of  Martyrs  in  the  Indian  Re- 
bellion.” The  “ Martyr  Missionaries”  of  Mr. 
Walsh  has  furnished  the  affecting  details  of 
the  Futtegurh  Massacre,  and  “ Brock's  Life 
of  Havelock”  of  the  occurrences  at  Cawn- 
pore. 

3 


*5 


CONTENTS 


Introduction 

CHAPTER  I. 

The  “Consecrated  Cobbler”  and  the  Witty  Reviewer 
— Revival  of  Missions — What  the  “Consecrated 
Cobbler”  lived  to  see — What  we  see  in  our  Own 
Days — The  Martyr-Spirit  in  India 

CHAPTER  II. 

Lessons  and  Encouragements  from  the  Sepoy  Re- 
bellion— India  before  visited  by  the  Consecrated 
Cobbler — India  Sixty  Years  afterwards,  and  Now 
— Discouragements  to  the  Missions  from  the  Eng- 
lish Government — Constitution  of  the  Army — 
Mohammedan  Intrigue — The  First  Spark — The 
Fire  spreading — Delhi — Statements  of  the  Mis- 
sionaries— Instance  of  Apostasy 


6 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  III. 

PAGE 

The  Mutineers  at  Delhi,  and  Slaughter  of  the  Mis- 
sionaries and  their  Families — The  Narrative  of 
Walayat  Ali 48 

CHAPTER.  IV. 

Outbreak  at  Meeroot — Account  by  Mr.  Medland — 

The  Catechist  Joseph  — His  Danger  and  Con- 
stancy— Its  Application  to  Ourselves — The  Cha- 
racter of  Joseph  — Amritsar — The  Narrative  of 
Jhuma  and  Hera,  two  native  Christians — The 
Sikh  Daoud .* 68 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  American  Martyrs  of  Futteghur — Description 
of  the  Mission  by  Mr.  Walsh — Devastations  by 
the  Mutineers — First  Alarms — Threats  of  the 
Natives — The  Spirit  of  the  Martyrs— Shahjehan- 
pore  Massacre — Departure  for  Cawnpore — Ter- 
rors by  the  way — Capture  by  the  Sepoys — Death  94 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Cawnpore — Treachery  of  Nena  Sahib — Gallant  De- 
fence of  the  Garrison — The  “Well  of  Cawnpore” 

— Frightful  Scenes — Letters  of  Rose  M 110 


CONTENTS. 


7 


CHAPTER  VII. 

PAGE 

The  Mission  in  the  Jungle — Gorruckpoor — Indian 
Blossoms — The  Protection  of  the  Government 
withdrawn  — The  English  Residents  leave  the 
Town — Farewell  of  the  Missionary  to  the  Native 
Christians — Trials  of  Native  Christians — Happy 
Reunion — Allahabad — Revolt  of  the  Sepoys — 
Murder  of  Officers  and  Europeans — Treatment 
of  Native  Christians  — Gopee  Nauth  Nundy — 
Another  Hindoo  Convert 142 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Agra — The  Description  by  the  Converted  Brahmin, 
Dwarkanath  Lahoree — Another — The  Profession 
of  Christ  during  the  Mutiny  by  a Brahmin  and 
Mohammedan  Woman — Thakur  Das — The  Ladies 
at  Lucknow,  Mrs.  Orr  and  Miss  Jackson — Seal- 
cote  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hunter — Death  of  the 
Rev.  E.  H.  Cockey 204 


Conclusion 


225 


INTRODUCTION. 


Doubt  has  been  both  felt  and  expressed 
whether  the  religion  of  the  present  time  has 
not  degenerated  from  that  height  of  courage 
and  of  hope  which  it  reached  in  the  martyr- 
ages  of  the  Church.  The  following  me- 
morial of  what  modern  Christianity  has 
enabled  some  of  its  professors  to  endure 
for  the  “Master's”  name  will  satisfy  the 
reader  that  in  the  day  in  which  he  lives 
the  world  is  not  wholly  destitute  of  the 
noblest  type  of  a living  Christianity. 

It  has  been  widely  questioned  in  Chris- 
tian lands  whether  the  religion  of  the  con- 
verts who  have  been  gathered  into  the 

Church  from  among  the  heathen  is  of  that 

9 


10 


INTRODUCTION. 


true  character  which  is  possessed  by  those 
who  from  early  life  have  been  trained  in 
the  midst  of  Christian  privileges.  Indeed, 
mistrust,  if  not  contempt,  has  character- 
ized the  opinions  which  have  been  ex- 
pressed respecting  those  who  through  the 
instrumentality  of  our  missionaries  have 
been  “ turned  from  idols  to  serve  the  living 
and  true  God.”  A perusal  of  the  narra- 
tive which  follows  will  convince  any  reason- 
able mind  that  the  religion  of  at  least  some 
heathen  converts  has  survived  the  severest 
test  to  which  any  man’s  principles  ever 
have  been  or  can  be  submitted. 

There  are  few  calamities  which  have  not, 
in  the  providence  of  God,  a bright  side. 
The  proof  which  the  late  mutiny  in  Hin- 
dostan  supplies  of  the  genuineness  of  the 
convictions  and  hopes  of  Hindoo  Christians, 
is  the  mitigating  circumstance  in  that  ter- 
rible disaster.  No  Christian  can  fail  to 


INTRODUCTION. 


11 


rejoice  in  view  of  the  grace  and  courage 
which  are  so  graphically  depicted  in  this 
volume.  May  it  not  he  hoped  that  the 
faithfulness  and  patience  of  native  converts 
in  India  will  both  remove  those  groundless 
objections  to  foreign  missionary  labor  which 
have  more  or  less  prevailed  in  all  our  con- 
gregations, and  quicken  Christians  generally 
in  the  commanded  work  of  “preaching  to 
every  creature”  the  “glorious  gospel  of  the 
blessed  God”? 

Difficult  it  necessarily  is  for  those  who 
have  not  resided  in  India  to  appreciate  the 
hold  which  the  Christian  religion  must  have 
taken  upon  the  minds  and  consciences  of  this 
Hindoo  detachment  of  the  “noble  army  of 
martyrs.”  With  me,  this  narrative,  and 
that  of  the  martyrs  of  Madagascar,  has  done 
more  than  aught  else,  but  the  promise  and 
covenant  of  God,  to  produce  confidence  in 
modern  missionary  labors  among  the  hea- 


12 


INTRODUCTION. 


then.  If  the  feeble  and  insufficient  efforts 
in  India  of  the  churches  of  Christ  have  se- 
cured results  which  parallel  the  martyr 
consecration  of  the  primitive  Christian  age 
and  of  the  age  of  the  Reformation,  what 
may  we  not  hope  in  relation  to  the  millions 
of  idolaters  and  Mohammedans  who  people 
that  continent,  when  the  Christian  world 
shall  have  awakened  to  an  appreciation  of 
its  full  responsibility? 

This  volume  is  commended  to  the  atten- 
tion of  Christians  generally,  as  calculated  to 
augment  their  piety  and  zeal  in  the  service 
of  Christ.  These  simple,  heart-stirring  nar- 
ratives will  not  be  read  and  considered 
without  leading  to  earnest  self-examination 
as  to  the  basis  of  our  own  personal  hopes. 

To  the  guardians  of  young  people,  whether 
parents,  Sunday-school  superintendents,  or 
teachers  of  Bible-classes,  “The  Martyrs  of 
the  Mutiny' 7 is  recommended  as  especially 


INTRODUCTION. 


13 


worthy  of  their  attention.  In  a day  when 
feeble  and  trashy  literature  finds  its  way 
into  Christian  families  and  is  sought  with 
avidity  by  even  those  who  avail  themselves 
of  the  privilege  of  Sabbath-school  libraries, 
(not  always  without  success !)  it  is  a great 
gain  to  the  cause  of  moral  and  religious 
education  when  a book  at  once  popular  and 
instructive  is  “ thrown  into  the  market.” 

A great  lack  in  all  our  churches  (may 
we  not  say,  the  chief  lack?)  is  the  true  mar- 
tyr-spirit,— the  spirit  of  Him  who  eighteen 
hundred  years  ago  laid  down  his  life  for  us, 
— the  spirit  of  the  apostles  of  Jesus,  who 
followed  the  martyr-steps  of  their  Master, 
— the  spirit  which  on  Alpine  slopes  and  in 
Waldensian  homes  nerved  men  and  women 
to  achieve  similar  victories  by  testifying  to 
the  death  against  error.  The  Church,  we 
say,  lacks  this  spirit  of  courage  and  self- 
denial  ; and  she  must  receive  it  in  answer  to 
2 


14 


INTRODUCTION. 


prayer,  and  by  dint  of  practice,  ere  she  wins 
those  conquests  to  which  the  providence 
and  the  word  of  God  call  her.  The  world 
seems  ready  to  yield  itself  to  the  control  of 
Christian  truth;  the  Church  holds  back 
from  that  self-denial  and  courage  without 
which  the  last  grand  struggle  between 
truth  and  error  can  never  be  successfully 
carried  on. 

May  we  not  hope  that  this  voice  from 
the  plains  of  Hindostan  will  awaken  in 
some  hearts,  at  least,  the  martyr-spirit? 

J.  J. 


Calvary  Church, 
Philadelphia,  Feb.  13, 1860. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  ‘‘Consecrated  Cobbler”  and  the  Witty  Reviewer — 
Revival  of  Missions — What  the  “Consecrated  Cob- 
bler” lived  to  see — What  we  see  in  our  Own  Days — 
The  Martyr  Spirit  in  India. 

More  than  sixty  years  ago;  a journeyman 
shoemaker  dwelt  in  the  village  of  Hackleton, 
a few  miles  from  Northampton,  in  England. 
For  a “cobbler,”  the  conduct  of  this  man 
was  certainly  very  odd.  A sister  who  lived 
with  him  noticed  that  he  often  stood  mo- 
tionless for  an  hour  or  more  in  the  middle 
of  the  path  of  his  garden,  thinking  on  some 
newly- contemplated  project.  “ If  we  join  him 
in  his  evening  hours,  we  shall  find  him 
reading  the  Bible  in  one  or  other  of  four 
different  languages  with  which  he  has 

15 


16 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


already  made  himself  familiar;  or,  if  we 
follow  him  into  his  school,  we  shall  dis- 
cover him  with  a large  leather  globe  of  his 
own  construction,  pointing  out  to  the  village 
urchins  the  different  kingdoms  of  the  earth, 
saying,  1 These  are  Christians;  these  are 
Mohammedans ; and  these  are  pagans — 
and  these  are  pagans F — his  voice  stopped 
by  strong  emotions,  as  he  repeats  and  re- 
repeats the  last  mournful  utterance.”  This 
man  was  Carey, — the  father  of  modern 
missions,  the  chosen  instrument  of  God  to 
awaken  the  sleeping  professors  of  Chris- 
tianity to  a sense  of  their  responsibility. 
The  deep  and  ardent  thinking  of  the  great 
“ cobbler”  (no  nobler  name  can  we  bestow 
on  him)  gave  birth  to  the  “ Baptist  Mission 
Society.”  He  succeeded  in  forming  a small 
society,  at  Kettering,  on  the  2d  of  Octo- 
ber, 1792,  and  at  the  first  meeting  collected 
sixty-two  dollars, — the  nucleus  of  that  vast 
machinery  of  missions  which  now  extends 
to  almost  every  clime  and  tongue. 

“ Carey  sailed  to  India  in  1793.  Driven 
by  the  jealousy  of  the  East-India  Company” 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY". 


17 


— to  their  eternal  shame  be  it  spoken — 
“out  of  an  English  ship  in  which  he  was 
about  to  sail,  he  took  passage  in  a Danish 
vessel,  and  chose  a Danish  settlement  in 
India  for  his  residence.”  One  man,  un- 
appalled at  the  prospect,  had  set  out  to 
convert  one  hundred  and  thirty  millions  of 
immortal  beings. 

When  we  consider  the  apparent  insigni- 
ficancy of  the  man  and  the  means,  we  can 
scarcely  wonder  that  the  witty  and  elegant 
Sydney  Smith  should  have  laughed  and  won- 
dered at  such  an  insane  scheme, — though  we 
cannot  help  feeling  a meed  of  contempt  that 
a professedly  Christian  minister  should  have 
stooped  to  dip  his  pen  in  the  vinegar  of 
satire,  in  order  to  ridicule  an  undertaking 
at  once  so  Christian,  unselfish,  and  noble. 
In  the  “Edinburgh  Review,”  of  April, 
1808,  the  following  appeared,  in  the  well- 
known  style  of  the  sarcastic  but  irreverent 
parson : — 

“The  first  number  of  the  'Anabaptist 
Missions’  informs  us  that  the  origin  of  the 
society  will  be  found  in  the  workings  of 


18 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


Brother  Carey  s mind , whose  heart  appears 
to  have  been  set  upon  the  conversion  of  the 
heathen  in  1786,  before  he  came  to  reside 
at  Moulton'.  These  workings  produced  a 
sermon  at  Northampton,  and  the  sermon  a 
subscription,  to  convert  four  hundred  and 
twenty  millions  of  pagans.  Of  the  sub- 
scription we  have  the  following  account : — 
1 Information  is  come  from  Brother  Carey 
that  a gentleman  from  Northumberland  had 
promised  to  send  him  twenty  pounds  for  the 
society  and  to  subscribe  four  guineas  an- 
nually. At  this  meeting  at  Northampton, 
two  other  friends  subscribed  and  paid  two 
guineas  apiece,  two  more,  one  guinea  each, 
and  another,  half  a guinea, — making  six 
guineas  and  a half  in  all/  ” 

This  the  reverend  wit  presented  as  part 
of  a “perilous  heap  of  trash/'  while  exe- 
cuting his  chosen  office  of  “routing  out  a 
nest  of  consecrated  cobblers."  “Why,"  adds 
he, — “why  are  we  to  send  out  little  detach- 
ments of  maniacs  to  spread  over  the  finest 
regions  of  the  world  the  most  unjust  and 
contemptible  opinion  of  the  gospel?  Let 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


19 


any  man  read  the  ‘ Anabaptist  Missions/ 
Can  he  do  so  without  deeming  such  men 
pernicious  and  extravagant  in  their  own 
country , and  without  feeling  that  they  are 
benefitting  us  much  more  by  their  absence 
than  the  Hindoos  by  their  advice  ?” 

That  “ Consecrated  Cobbler”  lived  till  from 
the  press  which  he  established  at  Serampore 
there  had  issued  two  hundred  and  twelve 
thousand  copies  of  the  Bible,  in  forty  different 
languages, — the  vernacular  tongues  of  three 
hundred  and  eighty  millions  of  immortal 
beings, — and  until  he  had  seen  expended 
upon  the  noble  object,  on  behalf  of  which 
the  first  small  offering  at  Kettering  was 
presented,  no  less  a sum  than  four  hundred 
and  sixty  thousand  dollars!  And  thank 
God  that  in  our  own  day  we  live  to  see 
the  effects  of  the  work  of  those  “ little  de- 
tachments of  maniacs;”  to  see  the  gospel 
flourishing  in  every  part  of  the  earth;  to 
see  that  church,  of  which  the  witty  reviewer 
was  an  outwardly-consecrated  minister,  fore- 
most in  the  propagation  of  foreign  missions, 
and  to  see  in  the  triumphs  of  Hindoo  Chris- 


20 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


tian  martyrs  the  power  and  efficacy  of  the 
gospel  of  Christ. 

In  the  course  of  the  recent  rebellion  in 
India;  the  effect  of  missionary  labor  among 
the  heathen  was  more  strongly  brought  to 
light  than  ever  before.  The  history  of  the 
martyrs  of  the  Christian  church  affords  noble 
examples  of  the  victories  of  faith ; but  seldom 
— not  even  in  the  bloody  massacres  of  Ma- 
dagascar— has  the  Christian  light  shone  more 
brightly,  or  the  Christian  faith  been  more 
triumphant,  than  in  the  terrible  trials  of 
the  Sepoy  rebellion.  The  loss  of  life  was 
but  a small  matter,  compared  with  the  fear- 
ful tortures  of  mind  and  body,  the  dreadful 
dishonor  and  outrage,  to  which  those  Chris- 
tian martyrs,  both  Hindoo,  American,  and 
European,  were  exposed.  And  yet,  though 
surrounded  by  millions  of  raging  foes, 
though  threatened  with  the  most  terrible 
sufferings,  or  proffered  the  boon  of  life  for 
the  denial  of  their  religion,  but  few,  very 
few,  of  the  bands  of  Christians  in  India 
were  unstable  in  the  faith.  While  those 
who  had  been  brought  up  in  the  way  of 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


21 


holiness  in  their  childhood  exhibited  the 
undaunted  spirit  of  their  race  and  religion, 
the  despised  Hindoo,  but  lately  converted 
to  Christianity, — till  within  a few  months, 
or,  at  most,  years,  an  idolatrous  pagan, — 
showed  a no  less  Christian  spirit  and  was 
no  less  ready  to  die  for  the  religion  of  the 
gospel. 

To  read  the  history  of  their  heroic  en- 
durance and  martyr  death  may  serve  to 
confirm  arid  encourage  the  faith  of  those 
who,  more  favored  than  they,  live  in  a land 
of  safety  and  peace, — where  every  man 
dwelleth  “ under  his  own  vine  and  fig-tree, 
no  man  daring  to  make  him  afraid.” 


22 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  II. 

Lessons  and  Encouragements  from  the  Sepoy  Rebellion 
— India  before  visited  by  the  Consecrated  Cobbler — 
India  Sixty  Years  afterwards,  and  Now — Discourage- 
ments to  the  Missions  from  the  English  Government 
— Constitution  of  the  Army — Mohammedan  Intrigue 
— The  First  Spark — The  Fire  spreading — Delhi — 
Statements  of  the  Missionaries — Instance  of  Apostasy. 

The  great  “ Sepoy  Rebellion”  in  India 
seems  to  have  been  intended,  in  the  pro- 
vidence of  God,  for  a lesson  to  the  Christians 
of  the  world.  It  not  only  proved  to  England, 
and  to  the  great  Company  which  had  go- 
verned India  for  over  a century,  that  He 
who  holds  the  nations  in  his  hand  will  not 
suffer  those  who  are  blessed  with  the  light 
of  his  gospel  to  lie  indolently  still  while 
their  brethren  are  perishing,  or  to  truckle 
to  the  pagan  belief  of  those  people  who  have 
been  by  him  committed  to  their  care.  It 
also  proved  to  Christians  of  every  land 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


that  their  labors  and  expenditures  had  not 
been  in  vain,  and  that  the  gospel  planted 
in  that  dark  and  heathen  soil  had  been  rich 
in  precious  fruits.  We  shudder  as  we  read 
the  mournful  story  of  the  sufferings  and  fate 
of  the  Christian  martyrs  who  perished  in 
that  mutiny;  but  our  sadness  is  turned  into 
joy,  and  our  sorrow  into  thanksgiving,  when 
we  learn  their  glorious  end. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  give  a picture  of 
the  state  of  India  before  Carey  had  carried 
thither  the  precious  seed,  and  when  Chris- 
tians were  yet  careless  of  the  heathen’s  fate. 
It  is  thus  depicted  in  the  last  Report  of  the 
Baptist  Missionary  Society  of  London : — 

“When  Carey  first  pondered  over  the 
religious  condition  of  the  heathen  world, 
idolatry  reigned  throughout  India,  only 
here  and  there  limited  in  its  swTay  by  the 
hostile  monotheism  of  the  prophet  of  Mecca. 
With  the  exception  of  six  or  seven  most 
estimable  Danish  and  German  missionaries 
in  the  Peninsula,  Hindostan  was  one  wide 
desert  of  frightful  spiritual  desolation.  The 
missionary  of  the  cross  was  nowhere  to  be 


24 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


met  with  in  all  Northern  India.  The  word 
of  God  was  altogether  unknown,  and  but 
the  rarest  facilities  existed  for  the  acquire- 
ment of  the  vernacular  languages  of  the 
country.  Caste  bound  the  people  with  an 
unbroken  chain.  The  priesthood  dominated 
over  every  class  of  society.  The  Sudra  was 
the  slave  of  the  Brahmin.  Legal  or  social 
rights  there  were  none  but  for  the  twice- 
born.  The  cruellest  and  vilest  rites  were 
practised  in  the  temples  and  at  the  festivals 
of  the  gods.  Infanticide  abounded.  A thou- 
sand widows  were  annually  burned  on  the  pyre 
of  their  husbands  in  Bengal  alone.  Slavery 
existed  in  many  parts  of  the  country.  The 
ravages  of  the  Mahrattas  and  the  Pindarries 
had  scarcely  ceased  with  the  establishment 
of  the  British  power,  and  not  without  leav- 
ing behind  them  fearful  traces  of  their 
wasting  inroads  in  ruined  cities,  pillaged 
homesteads,  and  jungle-covered  fields.  Roads 
there  were  none.  The  country  was  fast  fall- 
ing into  utter  barbarism.  Letters  had  well- 
nigh  ceased  to  be  cultivated.  What  learn- 
ing there  was  was  the  property  of  the 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


25 


pundits,  (the  scribes  of  the  East;)  and  the 
sacred  books  were  carefully  excluded  from 
the  eye  of  the  common  people. 

“On  the  suppression  of  internal  strife, 
the  overthrow  of  the  empire  of  the  Moslem, 
and  the  rise  of  the  English  dominion,  idol- 
worship  enjoyed  a revival.  The  occasion 
favored  it.  The  temples  were  again  thronged. 
The  places  of  pilgrimage,  made  safely  access- 
ible by  the  introduction  of  order  and  law, 
were  visited  by  multitudes,  and  the  horrors 
of  Juggernath  were  repeated  at  Gya,  Be- 
nares, Allahabad,  and  Hurdwar.  Yogis  and 
faquirs  roamed  the  country  in  large  bands, 
voraciously  feeding  upon  the  possessions  of 
the  poor  and  committing  unmentionable 
atrocities.  English  authority  had  even 
become  a party  to  the  maintenance  and 
extension  of  this  system  of  evil.  Alienated 
lands  were  restored.  The  endowments  of 
mosques  and  templps  were  carefully  hus- 
banded and  placed  under  the  care  of  the 
fiscal  officers  of  the  state.  Temples  were 
built  and  repaired  by  funds  supplied  from 
the  state  treasuries.  Eoads  to  sacred  places 

3 


26 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


were  made,  the  pilgrims  taxed,  and  the 
revenues  of  the  country  profited  by  the 
superstitions  of  the  people.  Schools  there 
were  none,  except  for  the  study  of  the 
Koran  and  Shastre  (the  sacred  books  of 
the  Mohammedan  and  the  Hindoo)  or  for 
the  purpose  of  imparting  to  the  trading- 
classes  the  merest  rudiments  of  writing  and 
arithmetic.  The  people  literally  perished 
for  lack  of  knowledge/' ’ 

Let  us  glance  at  another  picture.  In 
1852, — sixty  years  after  the  “detachments 
of  maniacs”  had  assaulted  India, — the  Kev. 
Joseph  Mullins,  of  Calcutta,  who  published 
most  valuable  statistics  of  the  “Results  of 
Missionary  Labor  in  India,”  makes  the  fol- 
lowing statement  regarding  the  position  of 
missions : — 

“The  Native  Christian  Churches  in 
India,  established  by  missionaries,  now 
amount  to  three  hundred  and  thirty- 
one.  Some  of  these  contain  numerous  mem- 
bers; but  the  great  majority  have  but  a few. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  the  standard 
of  admission  into  these  little  societies  is  not 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


27 


everywhere  the  same.  Some  missionaries 
admit  members  only  upon  good  evidence  of 
their  conversion,  arising  from  competent 
knowledge  and  consistency  of  Christian 
conduct.  Others  require  merely  a certain 
amount  of  knowledge  in  their  communicants, 
and  the  absence  of  great  inconsistencies.  By 
some  the  communion  of  the  Lords  Supper 
is  considered  a church-privilege,  to  be  en- 
joyed only  by  those  who  can  appreciate  it. 
By  others  it  is  counted  a means  of  grace 
which  shall  fit  men  for  understanding  its 
ends.  The  number  of  members  admitted  on 
the  higher  standard  is  five  thousand  four 
hundred ; of  those  on  the  lower,  thirteen 
thousand . The  care  of  these  Infant  churches 
constitutes  one  of  the  missionary’s  hardest 
trials.  While  it  is  a matter  of  thankfulness 
and  joy  to  see  their  members  forsaking 
idolatry,  seeking  the  true  salvation,  and 
attending  regularly  tjie  means  of  grace,  their 
defects,  their  backslidings,  and  the  grievous 
falls  into  sin  which  sometimes  occur,  prove 
how  imperfect  their  character  is,  and  give 
them  many  a bitter  hour.  It  is  scarcely 


28 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


just  to  look  for  any  high  general  develop- 
ment of  Christian  excellence  amidst  the 
dense  heathenism  of  India,  and  amidst  a 
people  as  low  in  moral  goodness  as  any  in 
the  earth.  The  evil  may  be  accounted  for : 
how  to  devise  a remedy  is  more  difficult. 
Careful  pastoral  superintendence  and  in- 
struction, raising  the  standard  of  admission 
into  the  body  of  communicants  and  mem- 
bers, and  the  faithful  administration  of 
Scripture  discipline,  may,  under  the  divine 
blessing,  tend  to  the  elevation  of  native 
Christians,  and  by  degrees  diminish  the 
evils  which  prevail  among  them. 

“Connected  with  the  native  churches  is  a 
body  of  individuals  cut  off  entirely  from  the 
great  communities  of  Hindoos  and  Mussul- 
mans. It  includes  not  only  the  families  of 
native  Christians,  but  of  many  others  who 
have  cast  off  the  restraints  of  heathenism 
and  placed  themselves  under  the  influence 
of  the  gospel.  Though  but  nominally  Chris- 
tian, they  are  all  under  regular  Christian 
instruction ; the  children  especially  are 
cared  for  in  schools;  and,  under  the  bless- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


29 


ing  of  God,  much  good  may  be  effected 
among  them  in  the  future.” 

“At  the  commencement  of  the  year  1852; 
there  were  laboring  throughout  India  and 
Ceylon, — 


The  agents  of 
These  include 
of  whom 

together  with 
These  agents  reside  at 
There  have  been  founded 
containing 
in  a community  of 
The  Missionaries  maintain 

containing 
together  with 
containing 
They  also  superintend 

and  instruct  therein 

Female  education  embraces 

containing 
but  hopes  more  from  its 

containing 


22  MissionarySocieties. 
443  Missionaries; 

48  are  ordained  Na- 
tives ; 

698  Native  Catechists. 
313  Missionary  Stations. 
331  Native  Churches, 
18,410  Communicants, 
112,191  Native  Christians. 

I, 347  Vernacular  Day- 

schools, 

47,504  boys  ; 

93  Boarding-schools, 
2,414  Christian  boys. 

126  superior  English 
Day-schools, 
14,562  boys  and  young 
men. 

347  Day-schools  for 
girls, 

II, 519  Scholars ; 

102  Girls’  Boarding- 
schools, 

2,779  Christian  girls. 


3* 


30 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


These  figures  become  more  impressive, 
when  we  reflect  that  they  represent  the 
germs  of  future  results.  It  is  now  the  seed- 
time; the  harvest  is  yet  to  come.  These 
infant  churches  are  starting-points  of  Chris- 
tianity in  the  nations  of  India.  That  which 
has  been  done  is  only  the  groundwork  of 
results  to  be  achieved. 

“The  Bible  has  been  wholly  translated 
into  ten  languages , and  the  New  Testament 
into  five  others,  not  reckoning  the  Serampore 
versions.  In  these  ten  languages,  a con- 
siderable Christian  literature  has  been  pro- 
duced, including  from  twenty  to  fifty,  and 
even  seventy,  tracts , suitable  for  distribution 
among  Hindoos  and  Mussulmans.  Mission- 
aries have  also  established  and  now  maintain 
twenty-five  printing -establishments.  While 
preaching  the  gospel  regularly  in  numerous 
tongues  in  India,  they  maintain  English 
services  in  seventy-one  chapels  for  the  edi- 
fication of  our  own  countrymen.  The  total 
cost  of  this  vast  missionary  agency  during 
the  year  1851  amounted  to  one  hundred 

AND  NINETY  THOUSAND  POUNDS,  (nine  hun- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


31 


dred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,)  of  which 
thirty-three  thousand  five  hundred  pounds 
were  contributed  in  this  country,  not  by  the 
native  Christian  community,  but  by  Euro- 
peans. A few  comments  on  these  expressive 
facts  may  put  them  in  a clear  light. 

“The  various  Missionary  Societies  from 
which  these  efforts  spring  are  twenty-two 
in  number.  Presides  the  great  missionary 
societies  of  England,  the  Established  and 
Free  Church  of  Scotland’s  missions,  and  the' 
American  Board,  they  include  the  American 
Presbyterian  Church ; the  American  Baptist 
Missions;  six  societies  in  Germany,  of  which 
the  society  at  Basle  ranks  first  in  its  amount 
of  agency;  the  General  Baptist  Society;  the 
Irish  Presbyterian  Church,  and  others.  To 
these  we  must  add  the  six  Bible  and  Tract 
Societies  of  England  and  America.  It  is  a 
most  gratifying  fact  that,  notwithstanding 
the  numerous  and  sometimes  bitter  contro- 
versies which  occur  among  Christians  of  the 
W estern  world,  their  missionary  messengers 
in  the  East  Indies  exhibit  a very  large 
amount  of  practical  and  efficient  Christian 


32 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


union.  While  occupying  stations  apart  from 
each  other,  and  thus  avoiding  occasion  of 
mutual  interference  with  each  others'  plans, 
in  numberless  instances  the  laborers  of  dif- 
ferent societies  cultivate  each  others'  ac- 
quaintance and  preach  together  to  the  hea- 
then. Almost  all  use  the  same  versions  of 
the  Bible;  and  the  Christian  tracts  and 
books  written  by  one  missionary  become  the 
common  property  of  all  others.  At  Calcutta, 
Madras,  and  Bombay,  the  missionaries  of  all 
societies  are  accustomed  to  meet  monthly  for 
mutual  conference  and  united  prayer.  In 
these  meetings,  all  general  questions  relating 
to  the  more  efficient  conduct  of  mission- 
ary operations,  to  common  difficulties  and 
common  success,  are  brought  forward  and 
discussed;  while  frequent  occasions  are  fur- 
nished in  private  for  cultivating  personal 
friendships  of  the  closest  kind.  Of  the  ex- 
ceeding value  of  such  union,  as  well  as  of 
its  duty,  scarcely  too  high  an  estimate  can 
be  made.” 

The  same  report  which  gave  such  a 
terrible  picture  of  the  state  of  India  in 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


33 


Carey’s  time  thus  eloquently  exhibits  the 
astonishing  changes  which  Christianity  has 
wrought : — 

“Now,  from  the  lone  wanderer  in  the  Sun- 
derbunds  of  Bengal  and  the 'six  or  seven 
faithful  men  on  the  coast  of  Tranquebar,  the 
missionary  band  has  multiplied  to  nearly 
five  hundred  missionaries,  the  chosen  mes- 
sengers of  Christ  from  all  the  churches  of 
Christendom.  Seven  hundred  converts  assist 
them  in  preaching  Christ  crucified  and  in 
distributing  the  bread^of  life  to  their  perish- 
ing fellow-countrymen.  In  lands  where  only 
the  revelry  of  idol-worship,  or  the  hoarse 
fanaticism  of  the  followers  of  the  false  pro- 
phet, insulted  the  God  of  heaven,  there  now 
gather  around  the  table  of  the  Lord  some 
twenty  thousand  persons,  who  have  learned 
to  sing  the  songs  of  Zion.  A hundred  thou- 
sand more  are  released  from  the  chains  of 
caste,  and  worship  at  the  footstool  of  the 
Most  High ; and  as  many  more  stand  per- 
fected before  the  throne  of  God  and  the 
Lamb.  The  jungles  of  Burmah,  too,  have 
given  to  Christ’s  church  an  accession  of 


34 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


many  thousand  souls,  their  conversion  almost 
answering  the  prophet's  question,  1 Shall  a 
nation  be  born  at  once?’  Within  the  circuit 
of  the  British  empire  in  the  East,  the  ex- 
istence of  more  than  four  hundred  Christian 
churches  testifies  that  his  servants  have  not 
labored  in  vain. 

u Besides  this  brief  summary  of  work  done, 
it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  mission- 
aries have  traversed  the  country  in  all  direc- 
tions, and  have  communicated  to  myriads 
some  knowledge  of  the  way  of  salvation. 
Moreover,  they  rejoice  in  the  prevalence  of 
the  impression  on  the  minds  of  the  popula- 
tion generally  that  the  reign  of  Hindooism 
is  drawing  to  a close..  The  festivals  of  the 
gods  are  celebrated  with  less  pomp  and  cir- 
cumstance, pilgrimage  is  on  the  decrease, 
fewer  temples  are  annually  erected,  Brahmins 
complain  of  the  diminution  of  their  gains, 
devotees  have  diminished  in  number  and  are 
held  in  less  esteem,  and  indecencies  are  to 
a great  degree  withdrawn  to  the  dark  pre- 
cincts of  the  temple-courts, — especially  in 
localities  where  Europeans  reside.  Nowhere 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


35 


is  idolatry  so  defiant  as  it  was  in  the  early 
days  of  evangelic  toil.  Evidence  yearly 
accumulates  to  establish  the  fact  that  num- 
bers serve  the  Lord  of  Hosts  in  secret, 
whom  fear;  or  other  motives,  at  present  re- 
strain from  the  confession  of  it.  In  some 
places  there  have  appeared  popular  move- 
ments in  favor  of  Christianity,  which  may 
fairly  be  regarded  as  only  preliminary  to  a 
wider  acceptance  of  the  gospel.  Such  have 
been  the  movements  in  the  villages  south 
of  Calcutta,  in  the  districts  of  Jessore,  Ba- 
risaul,  and  Krishnaghur,  among  the  Shanars 
of  Southern  India,  and  the  indigenous  in- 
habitants of  the  hills  of  Chota  Nagpore.  If 
some  with  little  knowledge  have  cast  off 
the  trammels  of  heathenism,  yet  is  there  a 
blessing  even  in  the  lowest  measure  of  de- 
parture from  the  abominations  and  supersti- 
tions of  the  land;  others,  in  considerable 
numbers,  have  vindicated  their  claim  to  be 
regarded  as  genuine  converts  to  the  gospel 
of  Christ. 

“The  missionaries  have  wielded  the  power 
of  the  press  with  the  most  important  results. 


36 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


They  were  the  first  to  apply  it  to  the  pre- 
paration and  issue  of  books  in  the  language 
of  the  common  people.  By  them  the  ver- 
naculars have  been  cultivated  and  elevated 
from  a rude  patois  into  forms  fitted  for  the 
expression  of  the  highest  truths.  The  word 
of  God  has  been  translated,  in  whole  or  in 
part,  into  the  principal  dialects  6f  the 
country.  The  rude  inhabitants  of  the  hills 
have  had  their  native  tongue  reduced  to 
writing,  and  portions  of  the  Scriptures  and 
other  books  prepared  for  their  instruction. 
Upwards  of  two  millions  of  parts  or  volumes 
of  the  sacred  writings  of  our  faith  have 
issued  from  the  mission-presses.  The  learned 
pundits  of  the  country  have  received,  nearly 
complete,  the  whole  Bible  in  the  Sanscrit 
tongue,  from  the  diligent  and  arduous  studies 
of  Carey,  Yates,  and  Wenger.  Four  volumes 
of  this  great  work  and  noble  monument  of 
missionary  learning  have  already  left  the 
press ; and  the  present  year  will,  it  is  hoped, 
witness  its  completion.  Tracts  in  uncounted 
numbers  have  spread  through  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  land  the  good  tidings  of 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


37 


peace ; and  several  millions  of  school-boobs 
have  contributed  to  the  instruction  and  en- 
lightenment of  the  present  generation. 

“In  all  this  we  have  results  actually 
gained.  They  are  the  direct  product  of 
missionary  exertion.  They  are  incontestable 
evidences  that  the  Lord’s  servants  have  not 
labored  in  vain.  Changes  to  be  presently 
referred  to  may,  or  may  not,  be  owing  to 
the  same  diligent  workmanship:  the  facts 
given  above  are  indubitable  proofs  of  God’s 
approval  of  the  well-directed  labors  of  the 
missionary  band.  But  for  their  sanctified 
exertions,  these  facts  would  have  had  no  ex- 
istence. They  are  the  first-fruits  unto  God 
of  the  consecration  of  his  church  in  these 
latter  days  to  the  extension  of  his  praise; 
and  to  him  shall  be'  the  glory.  His  blessing 
puts  to  shame  the  scoffs  of  adversaries.” 

Although  the  missionary  work  was  thus 
progressing  in  India,  it  is  well  known  that 
the  policy  of  the  Government  had  been  op- 
posed to  the  preaching  of  Christianity,  while 
the  religions  of  the  country — Mohammed- 
anism and  Brahminism — were  upheld  by  the 

4 


38 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


soldiers  of  a Christian  power  and  by  the 
revenues  of  a Christian  people.  Magnificent 
as  was  the  conquest  and  glorious  as  were 
the  deeds  which  won  India,  they  are  thrown 
into  the  deepest  shade  by  the  fact  that  Eng- 
land’s power  assisted  in  maintaining  the  re- 
ligion of  pagans  and  Mohammedans.  Terri- 
ble was  the  retribution  which  fell  upon  the 
faithless  nation,  and  dreadful  the  warning 
which  roused  them  from  their  lethargy. 

The  native  army  of  India  originated  with 
Lord  Clive,  in  1757.  In  the  month  of  Janu- 
ary of  that  year,  the  first  battalion  of  Ben- 
gal Sepoys  wTas  raised,  and  officered  from 
the  English  forces.  The  officers  consisted 
of  a European  captain,  lieutenant,  and  en- 
sign. The  other  officers  were  generally  na- 
tives. The  army  of  the  Bengal  Presidency, 
— in  which  the  mutiny  occurred, — espe- 
cially, was  composed  of  Brahmins  and  Mo- 
hammedans, the  former  predominating.  The 
Brahmin  Sepoy,  uniting  often  the  duties  of  the 
soldier  and  the  priest,  and  retaining  all  the 
haughtiness  of  his  race,  demanded  comforts 
and  privileges  allowed  to  the  soldiers  of 


Sepoys  in  uniform. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


39 


no  other  army  in  the  world.  These,  unfor- 
tunately, the  Indian  Government  too  readily 
conceded.  He  was  treated  as  on  a par  with 
the  European  soldiery,  wras  permitted  fre- 
quent furloughs  to  visit  his  home  or  the 
shrines  of  his  deities,  and  received  decora- 
tions of  honour  for  distinguished  services. 

But  the  Sepoy  unfaithfulness  is  most  to 
be  ascribed  to  Mohammedan  intrigue.  It 
is  known  to  every  one  acquainted  with  In- 
dian society  that  the  Mussulman  portion  of 
the  people  have  very  generally  exhibited  an 
impatience  of  British  control.  These  men 
were  ever  unscrupulous  in  the  use  of  means 
to  gratify  their  ambition,  and  taught  from 
infancy  to  tell  lies,  on  principle,  for  the  fur- 
therance of  their  religion.  • 

It  was  natural  that,  placed  side  by  side 
as  fellow-soldiers,  and  often  fighting  together 
against  a common  foe,  the  Mohammedans  and 
Brahmins,  who  had  before  looked  upon  each 
other  as  dire  enemies,  should  be  drawn  to- 
gether by  sympathy,  at  least  of  profession, 
and  that  the  Hindoos  should  be  open  to  the 
intrigues  of  their  wily  companions. 


i 


40 


MARTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


So  long  as  the  kingdom  of  Oude  remained 
independent,  the  Mussulmans  hoped  it  might 
form  a nucleus  of  power  by  which  the  Mo- 
hammedan empire  should  again  be  esta- 
blished in  India;  but  its  annexation  to  the 
British  rule  seemed  to  dash  to  the  ground 
any  hopes  they  may  have  had  of  reviving 
their  dominion.  Their  only  resource  was 
the  Sepoy  army,  numbering  nearly  200,000 
men.  By  working  on  the  patriotism,  the 
religious  passions  and  prejudices,  of  these 
soldiers,  they  determined  to  excite  them  to 
rebellion : — with  what  success  the  mourning 
homes,  the  blood-stained  streets,  and  ruined 
hamlets  of  India  too  well  testify. 

There  is  nothing  respecting  which  a Hin- 
doo is  so  sensitive  as  his  caste . To  attempt 
to  deprive  him  of  his  caste  is  almost  worse 
than  an  attempt  on  his  life.  It  was  not  diffi- 
cult, therefore,  for  the  Mohammedans  to 
convince  the  Hindoos  that  they  who  had 
forbidden  widows  to  be  burned  and  children 
to  be  thrown  into  the  Ganges, — who  had 
interfered  with  the  cruelties  of  the  swinging 
feast,  and  granted  a Brahmin  permission 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


41 


to  retain  his  property  though  he  changed 
his  religion, — who  had  allowed  the  widows 
of  Brahmins  to  marry  again, — were  about 
to  do  away  entirely  with  the  sacred  privi- 
leges of  caste.  Unhappily,  the  affair  of  the 
“ greased  cartridges”  afforded  too  good  an 
opportunity  to  the  scheming  Mussulmans. 
The  die  was  thrown.  Mohammedan  and 
Hindoo,  like  Herod  and  Pilate,  became 
friends,  being  united  at  least  in  one  thing, — 
their  common  enmity  to  the  British  and  their 
desire  to  extirpate  the  race  from  India. 

In  the  month  of  January,  1857,  a work- 
man of  the  lowest  caste , (a  Sudra ,)  at  Dum- 
dum, asked  a Brahmin  Sepoy  of  the  2d 
Grenadiers  to  give  him  water  from  his 
“lota,”  \ a brass  pot.)  The  Sepoy  refused, 
on  the  ground  of  his  superior  caste , and  be- 
cause his  “ lota”  would  be  defiled  by  the 
touch  of  the  Sudra.  The  latter,  incensed, 
observed  that  “the  pride  of  caste  would  soon 
be  brought  low ; for  the  Sepoy  would  pre- 
sently have  to  bite  cartridges  covered  with 
the  fat  of  cows  and  pigs,” — the  one  an 
animal  of  special  veneration,  the  other  of  as 

4* 


42 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


great  abhorrence.  An  excitement  was  at 
once  occasioned  among  the  troops,  who 
begged  the  officers  to  change  the  objection- 
able cartridges.  This  was  done,  by  order- 
of  the  Government,  and  different  ingredients 
used  in  their  preparation.  But  the  news  of 
the  affair  spread.  The  Sepoys — prompted,  no 
doubt,  by  their  Mohammedan  friends — began 
to  imagine  that  they  were  the  victims  of  a 
conspiracy  to  destroy  their  caste.  At  Bar- 
rackpoor  the  inquietude  manifested  itself  by 
the  burning  of  several  dwellings.  Secret 
mutinous  meetings  were  held  by  the  sol- 
diery. At  Berhampoor  and  Vizianagram 
the  troops  refused  to  receive  the  cartridges 
or  to  obey  the  orders  of  their  officers.  At 
Barrackpoor,  on  the  29th  of  March,  two 
English  sub-officers  were  cut  down. 

The  19th  Regiment,  which  had  been  princi- 
pally engaged  in  this  affair,  was  dismissed, 
and  Mungul  Pandy,  the  leading  mutineer, 
hung.  Still  the  contagion  spread. 

A European  doctor  at  Lucknow  inad- 
vertently tasted  some  medicine  before  hand- 
ing it  to  a sick  Brahmin.  It  was  construed 

o 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


43 


by  the  soldiers  as  an  attempt  on  their  caste : 
the  regiment  rose,  and  burned  the  doctor's 
bungalow.  Sir  Henry  Lawrence,  the  British 
Resident,  observing  the  mutinous  disposition 
of  the  men,  called  out  several  regiments,  and, 
with  a battery  of  eight  guns,  proceeded  by 
night  to  the  lines  of  the  mutineers,  sur- 
rounded them,  and,  compelling  them  to  lay 
down  their  arms,  confined  them  to  their  lines 
pending  further  measures.  On  the  evening 
of  Sunday,  the  10th  of  May,  three  regiments 
rose  at  Meeroot,  fired  the  bungalows,  and 
ruthlessly  murdered  every  European  man, 
woman,  and  child  they  could  find.  Thence 
they  at  once  marched  to  Delhi,  which  was 
garrisoned  by  native  troops.  One  regiment 
was  led  out  to  meet  them,  but  the  faithless 
Sepoys  to  a man  joined  with  the  rebels;  the 
English  officers  were  brutally  slain,  and  the 
whole  force,  pouring  into  Delhi  at  different 
quarters,  spent  the  remainder  of  the  day  in 
outrages  and  murders  too  horrible  and  fiend- 
ish to  relate.  The  vast  magazine  was  de- 
fended by  seven  Englishmen  until  no 
longer  tenable,  when  it  was  fired,  blowing 


44 


MART  YES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


two  thousand  of  the  mutineers  into  the  air. 
On  the  12th  of  May  the  Empire  was  pro- 
claimed, under  the  King  of  Delhi ; and  it  may 
be  said  that  the  mutiny  had  then  fairly  com- 
menced. Thus  inaugurated  in  blood,  it  con- 
tinued in  blood  until  heathen  fury  had  spent 
its  strength  and  the  vengeance  of  an  out- 
raged nation  had  been  fully  satisfied. 

On  the  10th  of  May,  1857,  as  we  have 
seen,  fell  at  Meeroot  the  first  victims  of  the 
Indian  rebellion.  On  the  next  day,  forty 
women  and  forty-four  children  perished  in 
the  most  horrible  manner  at  Delhi.  At 
Agra,  thirty-three  more  were  coolly  mur- 
dered; at  Cawnpore,  between  three  and 
four  hundred.  The  barbarous  Nena  Sahib 
— who  had  been  educated,  in  accordance 
with  the  policy  of  the  Government,  in  a 
Hindoo-British  College,  where  among  Eng- 
lish and  Continental  classics  the  Bible  was 
never  admitted — ordered  three  hundred 
men,  women,  and  children  to  be  butchered 
on  the  night  of  the  16th  July. 

“ From  that  time  forward,”  says  the  Bev. 
Joseph  Mullens, 11  began  a series  of  atrocities 


MAKTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


45 


unparalleled  in  the  history  of  our  colonial  set- 
tlements. From  that  time,  in  numerous  lo- 
calities in  Upper  India,  men,  women,  children, 
of  our  own  nation,  were  exposed  to  trials, 
difficulties,  and  dangers  of  the  most  awful 
kind  and  were  involved  in  one  common  ruin. 
They  were  hunted  down,  tied  together,  fas- 
# tened  to  trees  and  stakes,  and,  though  un- 
armed and  defenceless,  were  brutally  slain. 
For  several  months,  over  hundreds  of  square 
miles,  their  houses  were  heaps  of  ruins.  The 
highways  were  destroyed;  all  traffic  ceased; 
riot  and  plunder  and  murder  stalked  wildly 
through  the  land,  and  the  bodies  of  about 
fifteen  hundred  of  our  own  countrymen  and 
countrywomen  lay  unburied  upon  the  wastes, 
a prey  to  jackals  and  vultures  and  the  foul 
birds  of  night.” 

Dr.  Duff,  in  a letter  dated  from  October  1st 
to  8th,  says,  “ From  the  fragmentary  way 
in  which  details  have  been  reaching  us,  it  is 
impossible  to  ascertain  with  absolute  accu- 
racy the  number  of  British  Christians  that 
have  met  with  an  untimely  end  in  the  midst 
of  the  present  awful  whirlwind  of  fire  and 


46 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


blood.  One  thing  is  certain : that,  at  the 
lowest  calculation,  the  number  cannot  be 
under  thirteen  hundred.  Of  that  number, 
about  two  hundred  and  forty  have  been 
British  military  officers, — about  a tenth  of 
the  officers  of  the  Bengal  army.  Great  as  is 
this  number,  the  marvel  is  that,  amid  such 
terrific  scenes,  it  has  been  so  small.  I now 
speak  of  those  who  have  been  actually  mas- 
sacred, and  not  of  those  who  have  fallen  in 
open  battle  with  the  enemy.  The  rest  of  the 
thirteen  hundred  consist  of  civil  servants  of 
the  East  India  Company,  assistants  in  Go- 
vernment offices,  bankers,  traders,  agents, 
and  ladies. 

"The  number  also  includes  four  chaplains, 
and  ten  male  missionaries,  with  their  wives. 
Of  the  latter  ten,  two  belonging  to  the  Pro- 
pagation Society  fell  at  Cawnpore,  and  three 
at  Delhi;  four  of  the  American  Presbyterian 
Mission  at  Futteghur,  and  one  of  the  Esta- 
blished Church  of  Scotland  at  Sealcote,  in 
the  Punjaub.” 

Of  the  many  victims  of  these  massacres 
it  is  pleasing  to  find  so  few  who  were  willing 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


47 


to  save  their  lives  by  denying  their  faith; 
and,  what  is  more  encouraging  to  missionary 
effort,  it  would  seem  that  a greater  propor- 
tion of  converted  Hindoos  were  true  to  their 
religion  than  of  their  more  favoured  breth- 
ren from  Christian  lands.  In  one  instance, 
an  Englishwoman,  who,  like  her  country- 
women, had  professed  the  religion  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  professed  the  faith  of  the 
false  prophet,  and  allowed  her  children  to 
deny  the  name  of  Christ,  as  the  price  of  their 
escape  from  death.  To  us  this  is  a mournful 
fact ; but  who  can  throw  the  first  stone  at 
her?  Pleader,  is  your  faith  so  strong,  and 
does  your  religion  so  shine  amid  trials, — 
slight  compared  with  those  of  the  Chris- 
tians in  India, — that  you  can  reproach  the 
feeble  faith  of  this  poor  woman  ? Ah ! how 
few  know  the  strength  of  their  armour  until 
they  have  proved  it ! 

But  on  these  few  cases  of  apostasy  we 
need  not  dwell.  Let  us  rather  turn  to  the 
noble  instances  of  heroic  constancy  exhibited 
by  the  faithful  Christians  of  India. 


48 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  Mutineers  at  Delhi,  and  Slaughter  of  the  Mis- 
sionaries and  their  Families — The  Narrative  of  Wala- 
yat  Ali. 

It  will  be  most  interesting  if  we  collect 
into  separate  chapters  the  memorials  of  the 
sufferings  and  glorious  triumphs  of  the  In- 
dian martyrs  and  confessors  at  each  of  the 
stations  which  have  acquired  a dreadful  re- 
nown for  their  several  massacres. 

The  mutineers  entered  Delhi  on  the  11th 
of  May,  1857.  Though  gallantly  resisted, 
their  immense  numbers  soon  overpowered  the 
Europeans,  and  the  terrible  slaughter  com- 
menced. The  Eev.  Mr.  J ennings,  the  chaplain, 
was  murdered  before  the  eyes  of  his  daugh- 
ter, who,  after  being  subjected  to  the  foulest 
outrages,  was  herself  butchered.  The  Kev.  A. 
B.  Hubbard  and  his  family  attempted  to  con- 
ceal themselves  from  the  infuriated  soldiery, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


49 


but  were  found,  and  slowly  despatched  by 
cutting  their  throats  with  broken  glass. 

But  of  all  who  fell  at  Delhi  the  title  of 
martyr  belongs  most  fully  to  the  Hindoo 
Walayat  Ali,  whose  wife  survived  to  tell  the 
story  of  his  fate,  of  the  greatness  of  his 
faith,  and  of  the  good  confession  which  he 
witnessed  before  the  heathen. 

THE  STORY  OF  WALAYAT  ALI. 

Walayat  Ali  belonged  to  a respectable 
and  once  wealthy  Mohammedan  family  in 
Agra.  His  first  religious  impressions  were 
the  result  of  the  labours  of  Colonel  Wheeler, 
a devoted  officer  in  the  British  army  of  In- 
dia. He  was  induced  to  commence  reading 
the  Bible;  but,  although  his  mind  was  un- 
settled, he  still  clung  to  Mohammedanism, 
and  sought  for  the  removal  of  his  doubts 
through  its  priests  and  ceremonies.  His 
last  attempt  thoroughly  opened  his  eyes  to 
the  real  nature  of  Mohammedanism,  and 
drove  him  with  renewed  diligence  to  the 
Bible.  He  went  to  a moulvi,  or  Moham- 
medan priest,  of  reputed  sanctity,  and  sought 

5 


50 


MARTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


to  become  one  of  his  disciples.  For  this  the 
priest  required  a fee  of  twelve  shillings,  but, 
after  hard  bargaining,  came  down  to  two 
shillings, — at  the  same  time  cautioning  our 
friend  against  telling  any  one  of  the  small 
price  he  had  paid,  and  exhorting  him  to  say  to 
all  that  he  had  paid  the  full  price,  twelve  shill- 
ings. This  was  too  much  for  his  credulity. 
The  thought  struck  him,  11 1 can  sin  enough 
without  the  aid  of  a priest : sin  is  the  burden 
under  which  I am  groaning;  and  yet  this 
man  would  have  me  tell  lies  in  order  to  fill 
his  pockets  1”  From  henceforth  he  turned  to 
Christianity,  and  long  continued  to  visit  the 
missionaries  of  all  the  denominations  in 
Agra. 

He  was  eventually  baptized  by  the  Bap- 
tist missionaries  in  1838;  and  from  that 
period  to  his  death  his  life  was  one  con- 
tinued scene  of  violence  and  persecution. 
His  own  family  and  neighbors  commenced 
to  throw  bricks  into  his  yard,  stopped  him 
from  getting  water  at  the  well,  and  at- 
tempted to  poison  him.  A younger  bro- 
ther commenced  a lawsuit  against  him.  It 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


51 


was  thought  advisable  that  he  should  leave 
Agra  for  Chittura,  where  he  continued  to 
labour  for  seven  years.  The  Baptist  breth- 
ren having  decided  to  send  a native 
preacher  to  Delhi;  pending  the  arrival  of  a 
European  missionary,  Walayat  Ali  was  se- 
lected. “When  I asked  him  to  go/’  writes 
the  Rev.  James  Smith,  with  whom  he  had 
been  associated  at  Chittura,  “ he  hesitated 
for  some  time.  He  knew  well  the  danger  and 
difficulties  he  should  have  to  grapple  with, 
and  the  peculiar  hatred  of  the  Moham- 
medans to  any  one  who  had  left  their  ranks, 
and  he  might  well  hesitate  before  he  under- 
took such  an  arduous  task.  When  once, 
however,  the  path  of  duty  had  been  ascer- 
tained, he  consulted  no  more  with  flesh  and 
blood,  but  declared  to  me  his  readiness  to 
go,  though  he  might  be  called  to  lay  down 
his  life  for  his  Lord  and  Saviour.  When  he 
bade  a sorrowful  good-bye  to  us  at  Chittura, 
with  his  interesting  family,  little  did  I ex- 
pect how  soon  he  would  be  called  to  the 
presence  of  his  Lord  in  the  martyr’s  chariot 
of  fire.  I visited  him  at  Delhi,  when  other 


52 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


duties  permitted,  and  often  preached  with 
him  to  large  and  attentive  crowds  of  pegple 
in  the  Chandni  Chouk  Bazaar,  and  other 
great  thoroughfares;  and  I heard,  the  last 
time  I was  there,  that  his  influence  was 
being  felt  among  the  respectable  Moham- 
medans, and  that  one  of  the  princes  from 
the  palace  paid  him  an  occasional  visit 
during  the  darkness  of  the  evening.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  many  in  Delhi,  who 
had  failed  to  stop  his  mouth  by  fair  argu- 
ment, were  too  ready  to  stop  it  by  the 
sword,  as  soon  as  the  dread  of  British  power 
was  removed;  and  hence  I conclude  the 
townspeople,  (who  knew  him,  and  not  the 
Sepoys  from  Meeroot,  who  could  not  know 
him,)  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  insur- 
rection, rushed  on,  and  cut  him  down.” 
Walayat’s  wife,  who  was  also  a follower 
of  Christ,  thus  narrates  the  closing  scenes 
of  her  husband’s  earthly  career : — 

“ On  Monday,  the  11th  of  May,  about 
nine  o’clock  in  the  morning,  my  husband 
was  preparing  to  go  out  to  preach,  when  a 
native  preacher,  named  Thakoor,  of  the 


MAETYE3  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


53 


Church.  Mission,  came  in,  and  told  us  that 
all  the  gates  of  the  city  had  been  closed, 
that  the  Sepoys  had  mutinied,  and  that  the 
Mohammedans  of  the  city  were  going  about 
robbing  and  killing  every  Christian.  He 
pressed  hard  on  my  husband  to  escape  at 
once  if  possible,  else  that  we  would  all  be 
killed.  My  husband  said, i No,  no,  brother: 
the  Lord’s  work  cannot  be  stopped  by  any 
one.’  In  the  mean  while  fifty  horsemen  were 
seen  coming,  sword  in  hand,  and  setting  fire 
to  the  houses  around.  Thakoor  said, 1 Here 
they  are  come!  now,  what  will  you  do? 
Run ! run ! I will,  and  you  had  better 
come.’  My  husband  said,  ‘ This  is  no  time 
to  flee,  except  to  God  in  prayer.’  Poor 
Thakoor  ran,  was  seen  by  the  horsemen, 
and  killed.  My  husband  called  us  all  to 
prayer,  when,  as  far  as  I recollect,  he  said, — 
“ 1 0 Lord,  many  of  thy  people  have  been 
slain  before  this  by  the  sword,  and  burned 
in  the  fire,  for  thy  name’s  sake.  Thou  didst 
give  them  help  to  hold  fast  in  the  faith. 
Now,  0 Lord,  we  have  fallen  into  the  fiery 
trial.  Lord,  may  it  please  thee  to  help  us 


54 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


to  suffer  with  firmness.  Let  us  not  fall  nor 
faint  in  heart  under  this  sore  temptation. 

“ ‘ Even  to  the  death,  oh,  help  us  to  con- 
fess, and  not  to  deny  thee,  our  dear  Lord  f 
Oh,  help  us  to  bear  this  cross,  that  we  may, 
if  we  die,  obtain  a crown  of  glory!’ 

“ After  we  had  prayers,  my  husband  kissed 
us  all,  and  said, — 

“ 1 See  that,  whatever  comes,  you  do  not 
deny  Christ;  for  if  you  confide  in  him,  and 
confess  him,  you  will  be  blessed,  and  have  a 
crown  of  glory.  True,  our  dear  Saviour 
has  told  us  to  be  wise  as  the  serpent,  as 
well  as  innocent  as  the  dove;  so,  if  you  can 
flee,  do  so;  but,  come  what  will,  don't  deny 
Christ .’ 

“ Now  I began  to  weep  bitterly,  when  he 
said,  ‘Wife,  dear,  I thought  your  faith  was 
stronger  in  the  Saviour  than  mine.  Why 
are  you  so  troubled?  Remember  God’s 
word,  and  be  comforted.  Know  that  if  you 
die  you  go  to  Jesus.  And  if  you  are  spared, 
Christ  is  your  keeper.  I feel  confident  that 
if  any  of  our  missionaries  live,  you  will  all 
be  taken  care  of;  and  should  they  all  perish, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


55 


yet  Christ-  lives  forever.  If  the  children  are 
killed  before  your  face,  oh,  then  take  care 
that  you  do  not  deny  Him  who  died  for  us. 
This  is  my  last  charge;  and  God  help  you  P 
“ Now  some  horsemen  came  up,  and  the 
faquirs  (devotees)  who  lived  near  us  told 
them  to  kill  my  husband, — that  he  was  an 
infidel  preacher,  and  that  he  had  destroyed 
the  faith  of  many  by  preaching  about  Jesus 
•Christ.  The  troopers  asked  him  to  repeat 
the  Kulma ;*  but  he  would  not.  Two  of 
them  now  fired  at  us,  and  one  shot  passed 
close  by  my  husbands  ear  and  went  into 
the  wall  behind  us.  Now  all  the  children 
fled  through  a back  door  toward  the  house 
of  Mirza  Hajee,  one  of  the  Shazadas,  (or 
princes,)  who  respected  my  husband,  and 
was  fond  of  hearing  of  the  love  of  God 
through  Christ.  He  dressed  like  a faquir, 
and  seemed  partial  to  the  gospel.  He  took 
in  my  seven  children,  who  fled  for  refuge. 
One  of  the  troopers  now  interposed,  saying, 
‘ Don’t  kill  them:  Walayat  Ali’s  father  was 


* The  Mohammedan  Creed. 


56 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


a very  pious  Mussulman,  who  went  on  a pil- 
grimage to  Mecca;  and  it  is  likely  that  this 
man  is  a Christian  only  for  the  sake  of 
money,  and  he  may  again  become  a good 
Mussulman/  Another  trooper  now  asked 
my  husband,  ‘Who,  then,  are  you,  and 
what  are  you?’  He  answered,  ‘I  was  at 
one  time  blind , but  now  I see.  God  merci- 
fully opened  my  eyes,  and  I have  found  a 
refuge  in  Christ.  Yes,  I am  a Christian ; 
and  I am  resolved  to  live  and  die  a Chris- 
tian,/ ‘Ah/  said  the  trooper,  ‘you  see  that’ 
he  is  a Kaffir,  (unbeliever;)  kill  him/ 
“Again  he  was  threatened,  with  loaded 
muskets  pointed  at  his  breast,  and  asked  to 
repeat  the  Kulma,  with  a promise  of  our 
lives  and  protection.  My  husband  said,  ‘ I 
have  repented  once,  and  I have  also  believed 
in  Christ : so  I have  no  need  of  further  re- 
pentance/ At  this  time  two  European  gen- 
tlemen were  seen  running  down  the  road 
leading  to  the  river,  when  the  troopers  said, 

‘ Let  us  run  after  these  Feringhees  (Eu- 
ropeans) first : then  we  can  return  and  kill 
these  infidels/  So  they  went. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


57 


“My  husband  now  said  to  me,  'Flee,  flee 
— now  is  the  time — before  they  return/  He 
told  me  to  go  to  the  faquirs’  Tukeea,  while 
he  would  go  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Mackay’s 
house,  to  try  to  save  him.  I went  to  the 
Tukeea;  but  the  faquirs  would  not  allow  me 
to  go  in,  and  would  have  had  me  killed,  but 
for  the  interposition  of  Mirza  Hajee,  the 
Prince,  who  said  to  the  troopers,  ' This 
woman  and  her  husband  are  my  friends : if 
you  kill  them  I will  get  you  all  blown  up.’ 
Through  fear  of  this,  they  let  me  go,  when 
I began  to  cry  about  my  children;  but 
Mirza  Hajee  told  me  that  he  had  them  all 
safe.  I now  went  after  my  husband  towards 
Mr.  Mackay’s  house  in  Dyriagunge.  On  the 
way  I saw  a crowd  of  the  city  Moham- 
medans, and  my  husband  in  the  midst  of 
them.  They  were  dragging  him  about  on 
the  ground,  beating  him  on  the  head  and 
in  the  face  with  their  shoes,  some  saying, 
'Now  preach  Christ  to  us.’  'Now  where  is 
the  Christ  in  whom  you  boast?’  and  others 
asking  him  to  forsake  Christianity  and  re- 
peat the  Kulma. 


58 


MARTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


“My  husband  said,  'No,  I never  will:  my 
Saviour  took  up  his  cross  and  went  to  God ; 
I take  up  my  life  as  a cross,  and  will  follow 
him  to  heaven/ 

“They  now  asked  him  mockingly  if  he 
were  thirsty,  saying,  ‘ I suppose  you  would 
like  some  water/ 

“He  said,  ‘ When  my  Saviour  died,  he  got 
vinegar  mingled  with  gall:  I don’t  need 
your  water.  But  if  you  mean  to  kill  me, 
do  so  at  once,  and  don’t  keep  me  in  this 
pain.  You  are  the  true  children  of  your 
prophet  Mohammed.  He  went  about  con- 
verting with  his  sword,  and  he  got  thou- 
sands to  submit  from  fear.  But  I won’t. 
Your  swords  have  no  terror  for  me.  Let  it 
fall,  and  I fall  a martyr  for  Christ.’ 

“Now  a trooper  came  up  and  asked  what 
all  this  was  about.  The  Mussulmans  said, 
‘ Here  we  have  a devil  of  a Christian,  who 
will  not  recant : so  do  you  kill  him.’  At 
this  the  Sepoy  aimed  a blow  with  his  sword, 
which  nearly  cut  off  his  head.  His  last 
words  were,  ‘ 0 Jesus , receive  my  soul  /’ 

“I  was  close  by  under  a tree,  where  I 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


59 


could  see  and  hear  all  this.  I was  much 
terrified,  and  I shrieked  out  when  I saw  my 
poor  husband  was  dead.  It  was  of  no  use 
my  staying  there:  so  I went  back  to  the 
chapel-compound,  where  I found  my  house 
in  a blaze,  and  people  busy  plundering  it. 
I now  went  to  my  children,  to  the  house  of 
the  prince  Mirza  Hajee,  where  I stayed  three 
days,  when  orders  were  issued  to  the  effect 
that  should  any  one  be  found  guilty  of  har- 
boring or  concealing  Christians  they  would 
be  put  to  death.  The  queen,  Zeenut  Mahal, 
had  some  fifty  Europeans  concealed;  and 
she  did  all  in  her  power  to  save  them,  but 
was  compelled  to  give  them  up.  Mirza 
Gohur,  a nephew  of  the  king,  knew  that  I 
was  with  Mirza  Hajee,  and  he  remonstrated 
with  him,  and  warned  him  of  the'  conse- 
quences of  keeping  me.  Mirza  Hajee  now 
told  me  that  I must  take  one  of  two  steps, 
— either  become  a Mohammedan  or  leave  his 
house.  Both  of  them  urged  upon  me  to 
leave  Christianity,  saying  that  every  Chris- 
tian in  India  had  been  killed,  and  that 
for  me  to  hold  out  would  be  great  folly.  I 


60 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


was  promised  a house  to  live  in;  and  thirty- 
rupees*  per  month  to  support  myself  and 
children,  and  that  no  one  should  molest  me. 
God  helped  me  to  resist  the  temptation,  and 
I said,  1 No,  I cannot  forsake  Christ  I will 
work  to  support  my  children , and  if  I must 
be  killed,  God's  will  be  done .’ 

“I  had  now  to  go  out,  with  my  seven 
children.  A coolie  (porter)  who  came  with 
me  led  me  to  the  Kotwali,  (police-station,) 
and  some  Sepoys  there  attempted  to  kill  us. 
One  man,  however,  knowing  who  I was, 
told  them  that  I was  under  the  protection 
of  the  king,  and  not  to  kill  me.  I now  went 
about,  seeking  for  some  place  to  dwell  in; 
but  no  one  would  take  us  in,  lest  they  should 
be  murdered  on  our  account.  So  I had  to 
wander  from  one  place  to  another  for  some 
ten  days,  having  no  place  to  rest,  and  nothing 
hardly  to  eat.  Out  of  the  city  we  could  not  go, 
for  all  the  gates  were  closed,  and  strict  orders 
given  not  to  allow  any  woman  to  go  out. 


* The  rupee  is  the  standard  coin  of  India,  and  rather 
less  than  half  a dollar  in  value. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


61 


“On  the  thirteenth  day  a large  body  of 
the  Sepoys  went  out,  and  I managed  to  mix 
with  the  crowd,  and  got  out  with  my  chil- 
dren. I now  went  to  a place  in  the  suburbs 
of  Delhi,  called  Tulwaree,  where  I got  a 
room  for  eight  annas  (a  half-rupee)  a month. 
Six  rupees  was  all  the  money  I had,  all  the 
rest  having  been  taken  from  us  by  the  Mo- 
hammedans. 

“When  the  English  soldiers  arrived  be- 
fore Delhi,  I found  my  position  any  thing 
but  safe ; for  the  Sepoys  had  a strong  party 
there,  and  we  were  exposed  to  the  fire  of 
friends  and  foes.  Cannon-balls  came  near 
us  again  and  again,  and  one  day  one  even 
got  into  our  room,  but  did  us  no  harm. 

“I  heard  that  many  people  went  to 
a place  called  Soonput,  twenty  coss  (forty 
miles)  from  Delhi;  so  I accompanied  some 
people  there. 

“ In  this  place  I remained  for  three  months, 
working  hard  to  keep  my  little  children  from 
starvation.  I was  chiefly  engaged  in  grind- 
ing corn,  getting  but  one  anna  (three  cents) 
for  grinding  nine  seers,  (eighteen  pounds,) 


62 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


and,  in  order  to  get  a little  food  for  all,  I 
often  had  to  work  night  and  day : yet  the 
Lord  was  good,  and  we  did  not  starve. 

“When  I heard  that  the  English  troops 
had  taken  Delhi  from  the  city  people,  many 
of  whom  came  into  Soonpnt  in  a great  terror, 
I left,  with  two  other  women,  who  went  in 
search  of  their  husbands.  I again  came  to 
Tulwaree,  where  the  whole  of  my  children 
were  taken  ill  of  fevers  and  colds,  and  I was 
in  great  distress.  The  youngest  child  died 
in  a few  days,  and  I had  not  a pice  (a  small 
copper  coin)  to  pay  for  help  to  get  it  buried. 
No  one  would  touch  it.  So  I went  about 
the  sad  task  myself.  They  indeed  said  that 
if  I would  become  a Mohammedan  they 
would  bury  it  for  me.  I took  up  the  little 
corpse,  wrapped  it  in  a cloth,  and  took  it 
outside  the  village.  I began  to  dig  a little 
grave  with  my  own  hands,  when  two  men 
came  up  and  asked  why  I was  crying  so. 
I told  them;  and  they  kindly  helped  me  to 
dig  a grave,  and  then  they  left.  I then  took 
up  the  little  corpse,  and,  looking  up  to  hea- 
ven, I said, — 


MART  YES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


63 


“‘0  Lord,  thou  hast  been  pleased  to  call 
to  thyself  this  little  child,  and  I have 
been  able  to  bring  his  little  body  to  be 
buried.  But,  0 Lord,  if  thou  shouldst  call 
one  of  the  big  ones,  how  can  I bring  it? 
Have  mercy  upon  me,  0 Lord,  and  permit 
me  to  meet  with  some  of  thy  dear  people 
again ; and  if  not,  0 Father,  take  to  thyself 
the  mother  with  the  children/ 

“Now  I was  anxious  to  get  into  the  city, 
and  sent  a message  by  a native  Christian, 
Heera  Lall,  who  knew  us  well.  I at  last- 
found  him,  and  got  into  Delhi,  where  I was 
kindly  treated.  I got  Heera  Lall  to  write 
to  Agra,  in  hopes  that  some  of  our  mission- 
aries might  be  alive;  and  when  you  wrote 
back  I cried  for  joy,  and  thanked  God;  for 
I now  knew  that  what  my  dear  husband 
said  would  be  fulfilled, — that,  if  our  mission- 
aries should  be  spared,  I and  the  children 
would  have  friends. 

“Of  the  Bev.  Mr.  Mackay,  and  Mrs. 
Thompson  and  family,  I have  to  say  that 
before  I left  Delhi  I went  to  Mrs.  Thompson's 
house,  where  I saw  a sight  which  horrified 


64 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


me, — Mrs.  Thompson  and  one  daughter  lying 
dead  on  a bed,  grasping  each  other,  and  the 
other  on  the  floor  by  the  side  of  the  bed. 
The  heads  were  quite  severed  from  the 
trunks!  Of  Mr.  Mackay  I heard  that  he, 
with  several  other  gentlemen,  was  killed 
in  Colonel  Skinner’s  house,  after  a resistance 
of  three  or  four  days.  The  king  ordered 
the  people  to  dig  up  the  floor  of  the  cellar 
where  they  had  taken  shelter,  and  to  kill 
them.” 

Who  can  peruse  this  noble  record  and 
not  rejoice  in  the  proof  it  affords  that  the 
gospel  retains  all  its  pristine  power  to  ani- 
mate, with  a dauntless  courage  the  hearts 
into  which  it  is  received?  Walayat  Ali 
“being  dead  yet  speaketh;”  and,  while  his 
voice  attests  the  divine  virtue  of  true  Chris- 
tianity, it  should  be  a special  study  of  all 
who  profess  the  Christian  faith.  What  a 
lesson  does  he  teach  on  the  value  of  prayer 
in  times  of  overwhelming  danger,  when  he 
says  to  those  around  him  who  are  urging 
him  to  fly,  “ This  is  no  time  to  flee,  except 
to  God  in  prayer!”  And  what  models  of 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


65 


earnest  prayer  are  given  by  the  native  con- 
vert and  his  noble  wife  in  their  brief,  com- 
prehensive, and  earnest  supplications ! The 
martyr  thinks  of  the  “ cloud  of  witnesses/' 
and  prays  that  he  and  his  may  have  help  to 
suffer  with  firmness  and  not  to  faint  in  the 
day  of  trial;  while  the  confessor,  in  her  be- 
reavement, speaks  to  God  in  prayer,  and  tells 
him  of  her  sorrows,  as  one  knowing  that  he 
heard  and  pitied  her.  How  great  the  com- 
posure and  peace  of  the  good  man,  when  he 
gently  rebukes  the  weak  faith  of  his  weeping 
wife! — “I  thought  your  faith  was  stronger 
than  mine.”  And  when  he  spake  of  his  de- 
cease, and  directed  his  friends  to  be  “wise 
as  serpents,”  but,  come  what  would,  not  to 
deny  Christ. 

This  faithful  martyr  displays  true  Chris- 
tian heroism,  (a  truer  heroism  where  do  we 
find?)  when,  threatened  with  instant  death 
from  the  loaded  muskets  pointed  at  his 
breast,  and  promised  life  if  he  will  only 
repeat  the  Mohammedan  creed,  he  nobly  re- 
plies, to  the  question  “Who  are  you?”  “ I 
was  at  one  time  blind,  but  now  I see.  ...  I 


66 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


am  a Christian,  and  am  resolved  to  live  and 
die  a Christian.” 

Here  we  witness  the  holy  faith  of  Stephen, 
the  protomartyr,  when,  amidst  like  suffer- 
ings, the  crowd  gathers  around  Walayat 
Ali,  and  they  are  dragging  him  on  the 
ground,  beating  him  on  the  head  and  face 
with  their  shoes,  and  taunting  him  with 
preaching  Christ,  and,  like  the  Saviour's 
own  persecutors,  calling  on  him  to  prophesy 
to  them,  he  rejects  another  proposal  to  save 
his  life  by  repeating  the  Kulma,  by  saying, 
“ No,  I never  will : my  Saviour  took  up  his 
cross  and  went  to  God ; I take  up  my  life, 
as  a cross,  and  will  follow  him  to  heaven.” 

Mark  also  the  calm  self-possession  with 
which  the  dying  man,  alone  amidst  his  ene- 
mies, charges  his  persecutors  with  being  the 
true  children  of  Mohammed,  who  went  about 
converting  with  his  sword  and  obtained  his 
proselytes  through  fear.  “ Your  swords  have 
no  terror  for  me.”  Is  that  not  a sublime  cour- 
age with  which  he  says,  “Let  it  fall,  and  I fall 
a martyr  for  Christ”  ? Who  can  deny  to  him 
the  place  of  a martyr,  as  he  claims  it?  Just 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


67 


before  the  blow  fell  which  nearly  severed 
his  head  from  his  body,  he  might  have  lived 
if  he  would  have  recanted.  The  Mussul- 
mans labored  to  induce  him  to  return  to 
the  faith  of  his  fathers;  but  they  toiled  in 
vain  to  shake  the  faith  of  this  true  believer, 
who  stood  on  the  Rock  against  which  the 
gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail.  His  last 
words  were  those  of  the  great  leader  in  the 
noble  procession  into  which  he  fell : — 11  0 
Jesus,  receive  my  spirit!” 

Not  less  heroic  is  the  constancy  with  which 
his  wife  maintained  her  faith.  Widowed  and 
beggared,  with  her  children  crying  to  her  for 
food  and  dying  by  her  side,  surrounded  by  re- 
morseless foes,  she  forsook  not  the  gospel  of 
her  Saviour  nor  wavered  in  her  confession 
of  his  name. 


68 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTEE  IV. 

Outbreak  at  Mecroot — Account  by  Mr.  Medland — The 
Catechist  Joseph  — His  Danger  and  Constancy — Its 
Application  to  ourselves — The  Character  of  Joseph— 
Amritsar — The  Narrative  of  Jhuma  and  Hera,  two 
native  Christians — The  Sikh  Daoud. 

“ While  I was  performing  service  in  our 
mission  chapel  on  Sunday  evening/’  says 
the  Eev.  A.  Medland,  Church  missionary  at 
Meeroot,  “ I heard  a great  noise,  shouting, 
and  yelling,  accompanied  by  occasional  firing 
of  musketry.  At  the  conclusion  of  the 
prayers  I inquired  the  cause,  and  was  in- 
formed that  the  Sepoys  were  fighting  in 
their  own  lines.  Apprehending  no  danger, 
as  the  lines  were  at  some  distance,  I com- 
menced my  sermon,  but  had  not  proceeded 
far  when  a man  rushed  in  and  informed  me 
that  the  Sepoys  were  advancing  upon  us 
and  murdering  all  the  Europeans  they  could 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


69 


lay  hands  on.  Mr.  Parsons,  onr  catechist, 
quickly  followed,  and  confirmed  his  statement, 
when  I at  once  dismissed  the  congregation, 
and,  at  his  suggestion,  drove  off  in  a direc- 
tion opposite  to  my  house.  By  this  time 
huge  masses  of  smoke  were  ascending  in 
various  directions;  and  shortly  after,  we 
passed  the  European  troops  marching  to  the 
scene  of  disturbance.  Being  assured  that 
the  danger  was  imminent,  we  proceeded  to 
seek  shelter  in  the  house  of  a friend.  Ere 
we  could  enter  his  compound,  we  heard  a 
savage  yell  behind  us,  and  immediately  an 
empty  buggy  passed.  The  owner,  we  have 
since  heard,  was  murdered  on  the  spot,  and 
a gentleman  who  accompanied  him  very 
dangerously  wounded.  We,  however,  were 
mercifully  permitted  to  enter  our  friends 
house  in  safety,  where  we  remained  until 
escorted  by  some  officers  to  a place  of  greater 
security.  The  night  was  passed  in  a state 
of  fearful  anxiety  and  suspense,  whilst  the 
illuminated  sky  and  the  distant  firing  pro- 
claimed that  the  work  of  destruction  and 
carnage  was  proceeding.  Towards  morning 


70 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


the  firing  ceased, — when  we  were  horrified  bjf 
the  various  accounts  which  were  brought  in. 

“ On  Monday  my  servants  came,  and  in- 
formed me  that  a large  crowd  of  natives 
from  the  city — probably  a thousand — came  to 
my  house  on  the  preceding  evening,  inquiring 
for  Mrs.  Medland  and  myself,  and  threaten- 
ing to  cut  us  in  pieces.  Learning,  however, 
that  we  were  not  there,  they  instituted  a 
diligent  search;  but,  failing  in  their  object, 
they  set  fire  to  the  house  and  adjoining  pre- 
mises. The  whole  of  our  property  was 
either  burned  or  stolen,  and,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a few  articles  of  wearing-apparel 
which  have  since  been  thrown  back,  we  have 
nothing  left  save  the  clothes  we  have  on. 

“The  mob  next  inquired  for  Joseph,  my 
catechist,  (native  assistant.)  He,  however, 
was  at  church,  and  accompanied  me  when  I 
fled  as  far  as  he  could  keep  pace  with  my 
horse.  I then  directed  him  to  follow  on  as 
best  he  could ; but,  mistaking  my  directions, 
he  proceeded  by  a circuitous  route  to  my 
house  in  the  city.  He  was  recognised, 
beaten,  and  left  for  dead.  However,  he  re- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  '71 

vived,  ran  away,  hid  himself,  and  a day  or 
two  • after,  having  carefully  disguised  him- 
self, returned  to  me.  I have  since  learned 
that  a mob  approached  the  mission  premises ; 
but  learning  from  the  chowkedar  that  Mr. 
Lamb's  house  was  empty,  and  he  on  the 
hills,  they  departed  without  doing  any 
damage.  I have  not  yet  been  able  to  ven- 
ture into  the  city  to  ascertain  if  any  of  my 
property  remain : it  would  probably  be  at 
the  risk  of  my  life  to  do  so;  but  I gather 
from  my  servants  that  the  dwelling-house, 
school-room,  and  a small  bungalow  used  as 
a girl's  school-room,  have  all  been  de- 
stroyed." 

The  “ Catechist  Joseph"  has  won  a noble 
name  by  his  faithful  constancy  to  Christ. 
In  a letter  to  Mr.  Medland  he  gives  a his- 
tory of  the  trial  to  which  his  faith  was  put, 
and  his  willingness  to  lose  all  rather  than 
deny  his  Saviour.  His  letter  will  most  fitly 
tell  the  story. 

"Reverend  Sir:  — It  had  been  much 
better  if  I went  with  you,  because,  as  I was 


72 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


going  through  the  Lai  Kutu  Bazaar,  I saw 
that  the  Sepoys  were  firing  at  the  Begum’s 
bridge:'  therefore  I turned  to  the  left,  and 
ran  away  very  fast.  In  the  way  I met  with 
two  villagers,  who  were  coming  from  a cer- 
tain village.  They  said,  ‘ Don’t  go  to  the 
city,  but  let  us  go  to  Abdullepur.’  I said, 
1 No,  I will  go  to  the  city.’  When  I came 
to  the  little  village  which  is  near  the  Shapeer 
Darwaza,  (gate,)  although  I had  disguised 
myself,  yet  people  recognised  me ; and  one 
of  them  said,  ‘ Oh,  he  is  a Christian ; kill 
him.’  I could  not  deny  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ , although  it  was  the  very  moment  of 
my  death.  I said,  1 1 am  a Christian ; * but 
don’t  beat  me  or  kill  me.’  One  of  them  gave 
me  a very  severe  blow  with  his  Ifithee,  (a 
thick  stick  or  kind  of  club.)  After  this 
they  ran  towards  me  and  began  to  beat  me. 
I don’t  know  how  many  there  were  who  beat 
me;  and  when  they  had  perfectly  killed  me, 
as  they  thought,  they  went  away.  When  I 
received  the  last  and  severe  blow,  which  I 
thought  would  be  fatal,  I fell  upon  my  knees, 
and  prayed,  ‘ 0 Lord  Jesus  Christ,  receive 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


73 


my  spirit:  I commit  it  into  thy  hands/  For 
some  time  I remained  half  dead ; and,  after 
a little  while,  I heard  a voice  of  a man,  who 
said,  1 Throw  the  dead  man  away;’  but  no 
person  came  to  me.  When  I came  to  my- 
self, I got  up  and  ran  away.  They  ran  after 
me  again,  saying,  ‘He  is  still  living;  kill 
him!’  They  could  not  catch  me.  I did  not 
know  what  to  do,  nor  where  to  go.  At  last 
I went  to  Deghee  Village.  When  I reached 
there,  people  recognised  me,  (we  had  preached 
there  a week  or  ten  days  previously,)  and 
ran  after  me;  but  I went  out  of  their  reach. 
After  this  I went  to  the  jungle,  and  con- 
cealed myself  under  bushes,  where  I re- 
mained all  night.  Very  early  in  the  morn- 
ing I got  up,  and  came  in  the  city,  where  I 
saw  that  the  kathee  (my  house)  and  bunga- 
low were  burned  to  ashes.  I said,  ‘ It  is 
the  Lord ; let  him  do  what  seemeth  him 
good:  the  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath 
taken  away:  his  name  be  blessed.' 

“ I did  not  find  any  of  the  servants  there 
save  Kullu  Sing,  (a  teacher  in  the  school.) 
He  took  me  to  his  house ; but  his  father  did 


74 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


not  like  to  let  me  stay  there:  therefore  I 
sent  for  Mahesperhad;  (a  school-boy.)  As 
soon  as  he  heard  of  me  he  came;  and  took 
me  to  his  house,  and  gave  me  every  satis- 
faction. Please  tell  Mariann  (his  wife)  that 
now  I am  better  she  should  not  be  troubled, 
but  rather  pray. 

“ I remain,  sir, 

“ Yours  most  obediently, 

“ Joseph.” 

Great  indeed  must  have  been  the  con- 
fidence and  firm  the  hope  of  this  Christian 
Hindoo  to  have  enabled  him,  among  a crowd 
of  Sepoys,  thirsting  for  his  blood,  crying, 
“He  is  a Christian;  kill  him!”  to  say,  “I  am 
a Christian.”  “/  could  not,”  says  he,  “ deny 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  although  it  was  the 
very  moment  of  my  death.”  What  a glo- 
rious confession  from  the  mouth  of  a con- 
verted pagan,  and  what  an  example  for  the 
Christians  of  our  own  land  ! 

Let  these  words  be  marked  by  the  timid 
young  convert  who,  if  she  confesses  Christ 
in  the  family  and  desires  to  follow  him,  will 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


75 


have  to  take  up  the  cross  amidst  foes  in  the 
house.  Let  them  be  heard  by  the  young 
man  in  the  warehouse  and  the  counting- 
house,  who  must  run  the  gauntlet  under  the 
heavy  blows  of  ribald  scoffers,  but  whose 
blows  are  lighter  than  those  that  Joseph 
received  from  the  fists  and  clubs  of  his  per- 
secutors. And  let  them  be  heard  by  the 
youth  at  school,  when  he  has  to  kneel  down 
by  the  side  of  his  little  bed  in  the  large 
dormitory,  no  longer  at  his  mother’s  knee, 
to  hear  the  titters  and  jeers  of  young 
scoffers  who  have  never  been  taught  to  pray, 
or  have  already  trampled  parental  counsel 
beneath  their  feet.  “ Stand  up  for  Jesus!” 
was  the  motto  of  a beloved  minister  whose 
untimely  end  plunged  the  churches  of 
America  into  mourning;  and  even  while 
the  words  were  falling  from  his  lips,  one, 
“plucked  from  the  burning,”  in  India,  was 
re-echoing  the  words  and  upholding  thereby 
his  deeds. 

Mr.  Medland  thus  testifies  to  the  charac- 
ter of  this  remarkable  Hindoo,  and  explains 
some  portions  of  Joseph’s  letter  : — 


76 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


“Discovering  that  he  was  unable  to  keep 
pace  with  my  horse,  I directed  him  to  follow 
as  he  best  could  in  an  opposite  direction  to 
the  scene  of  disturbance.  Mistaking  my 
direction,  I suppose,  he  shortly  after  en- 
deavored to  return  to  the  city,  and  un- 
fortunately met  with  the  sad  treatment  he 
has  himself  described.  His  exclamation, 
' The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken 
away,’  was  made  under  very  peculiar  and 
trying  circumstances.  He  then  discovered, 
for  the  first  time,  that  the  whole  of  his  little 
property,  amounting  to  between  four  hundred 
and  five  hundred  rupees,  had  been  destroyed, 
and  was  in  ignorance  of  the  fate  of  his  wife 
and  father.  The  young  man  who  sheltered 
him  so  nobly  was  a Brahmin  youth  of  our 
first  class.  I had  always  considered  Joseph 
as  a promising  young  man  and  a sincere 
and  consistent  Christian.  This  trial  of  his 
faith  has  greatly  confirmed  my  opinion  of 
him.” 

It  was  not  many  days  after  these  events 
at  Meeroot  that  other  converted  natives  at 
Ameitsae,  in  the  Punjaub,  were  called  upon 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


77 


to  give  proofs  of  their  faith.  The  following 
narrative  of  Jhumah  and  Hera  is  rendered 
more  interesting  by  the  fact  that  the  time 
chosen  by  them  for  the  profession  of  Chris- 
tianity was  in  the  very  midst  of  the  mutiny, 
and  while  life  and  property  were  liable  to  be 
sacrificed  to  the  fury  of  their  countrymen. 

THE  NARRATIVE  OF  JHUMAH  AND  HERA. 

“Amristar  was  the  scene  of  a noble 
avowal  of  Christianity  on  the  part  of  two 
native  converts,  soon  after  the  outbreak 
of  the  mutiny,  and  during  the  troubles 
that  ensued.  The  35th  regiment  of  Native 
Infantry,  being  suspected  of  disloyalty,  was 
disarmed  and  sent  to  Amritsar,  where  it 
remained  for  some  months  under  the  guns 
of  the  fort.  The  armorer  of  that  regiment, 
whose  name  was  Jhumah,  and  his  wife  Hera, 
were  both  disciples  of  Christ,  the  man  having 
received  the  gospel  four  years  previously, 
through  the  reading  of  the  New  Testament 
by  his  wife,  who  had  first  found  the  Scrip- 
tures able  to  make  her  wise  unto  salvation. 
His  wife  lost  her  parents  when  she  was 


78 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


about  twelve  years  of  age;  when  she  was 
sold  for  a trifle,  by  the  woman  who  had 
taken  charge  of  her  after  her  parents’  death, 
to  a European  gentleman,  an  officer  either 
of  the  Queen’s  or  East  India  Company’s  Ser- 
vice. In  his  home  she  remained  twenty- 
seven  years,  at  the  expiration  of  which  time 
he  returned  to  England.  Previously,  how- 
ever, to  leaving  India,  he  settled  on  Hera 
twenty  rupees  per  month  for  her  life.  While 
residing  with  him  she  was  taught  to  read 
Hindoo  and  Persian,  though  the  word  of 
God  was  never,  during  this  period,  put  into 
her  hands.  Before  this  captain  left  India, 
and  during  one  of  his  absences  in  the  hills, 
Hera  (who  remained  in  his  house  at  Agra) 
saw  a man  come  to  the  compound  and  ask  a 
female  servant  for  some  water.  The  servant 
told  him  to  come  to  the  house  and  she 
would  give  him  some.  He  did  so,  and,  after 
drinking  the  water,  he  entered  into  con- 
versation with  Hera  and  her  servant.  After 
she  had  left,  she  observed  that  he  had  left 
behind  him  a book . She  says  the  man  was 
a book-distributor,  i.e.  probably,  a colpor- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


79 


teur.  She  put  the  hook  aside,  and,  seeing 
him  pass  by  another  day,  she  had  him  called, 
and  told  him  he  had  left  one  of  his  books  at 
her  house.  He  said,  1 Never  mind:  let  it 
remain.'  Still,  she  expected  that  he  would 
call  for  it  at  some  future  time;  but,  finding 
he  did  not,  she  put  it  away  in  her  box  with 
her  clothes. 

“When  the  captain  returned  from  the 
hills,  Hera  showed  him  the  book,  and  told 
him  she  understood  it  was  one  of  our  Chris- 
tian books,  and  she  should  like  to  read  it, 
but,  as  every  native  does,  she  first  wanted 
her  master's  order  to  do  so.  He  told  her 
he  would  not  forbid  her  doing  so,  but  she 
must  not  ask  him  any  more  about  it . She 
saiv  he  did  not  wish  her  to  read  it,  and  there- 
fore she  did  not*  In  her  box  the  book  re- 
mained for  twelve  years  without  her  once 
opening  it.  One  day,  on  going  to  the  box, 
the  book  attracted  her  notice,  and  she 


* These  are  the  men  whose  example  in  India  has 
done  more  to  disgrace  Christianity  than  all  the  efforts 
of  the  heathens  themselves. 


80 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


thought  she  would  take  it  out  and  see 
what  kind  of  a book  it  was.  Her  heart  at 
this  time,  she  says,  was  sorrowful.  She 
read  a little,  and  liked  what  she  read.  She 
continued  to  read  till  she  had  read  it  en- 
tirely through.  This  book  was  no  other 
than  the  New  Testament.  This  was  nine 
years  ago.  She  says  that,  having  read 
through  the  whole  once,  she  began  it  again; 
but  this  time  she  read  only  a small  portion, 
and  thought  over  it  for  a long  time,  when 
a little  light  broke  in  upon  her  mind,  and 
she  began  to  pray  that  God  would  make  her 
to  understand  what  she  read.  In  this  way 
she  went  on  reading  and  praying  for  three 
years  and  a half,  when,  to  use  her  own  ex- 
pressive words,  'her  faith  became  strong 
and  firm/  Soon  after  this  the  regiment 
(the  35th  Native  Infantry)  to  which  her 
husband  belonged  was  ordered  to  Lucknow. 
After  the  captain’s  departure  for  England, 
she  was  married  to  Jhumah,  the  armorer 
of  the  regiment.  While  in  Lucknow,  she 
experienced  a great  deal  of  annoyance  and 
persecution,  as  well  from  her  husband  as 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


81 


from  others ; but  she  told  her  husband  that 
she  would  give  up  every  thing  in  the  world 
if  she  were  obliged,  but  she  would  never 
give  up  her  book,  or  the  reading  of  it. 

“ Finding  she  was  not  to  be  moved  from 
her  purpose,  they  desisted  from  their  en- 
deavors to  persuade  her,  and  she  had 
peace  from  without  as  well  as  peace  within. 
At  length  she  gained  more  courage,  and 
read  her  book  in  a voice  so  loud  from  be- 
hind the  punda  (the  curtain  separating  a 
tent)  that  she  could  be  heard  by  those  who 
were  on  the  other  side.  Thus  her  husband, 
and  other  Sepoys  who  may  have  come  to 
his  tent,  heard  the  word  of  God  read.  It 
fastened  upon  her  husband's  mind,  and  he 
told  her  he  should  like  to  hear  more  of 
that  book.  She  then  began  to  read  to  him 
of  an  evening,  while  he  was  eating  his  food. 
And  here  one  cannot  but  feel  and  remark 
what  a contrast  she  was  to  many  Christians 
who  have  enjoyed  the  privileges  of  religion 
all  their  lives.  She  not  only  read  to  her 
husband,  but  she  never  omitted,  night  and 
morning,  praying  for  him,  that  God  would 


82 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


bless  his  word  and  turn  the  heart  of  her 
husband  to  himself.  She  was  also  in  the 
habit  of  talking  to  her  husband  of  what  they 
thus  read  together,  and  used  to  ask  him  if 
he  did  not  believe  that  all  that  was  written 
in  the  book  was  true.  He  told  her  he 
would  not  yet  say  he  believed.  ‘Well,  then/ 
she  replied,  ‘when  you  do,  tell  me.’  She 
continued  to  pray  for  him;  and  at  length 
God  showed  her  that  her  prayer  had  been 
heard  and  answered.  One  day  her  husband 
came  to  her  and  said,  ‘ Now,  I believe,  my  faith 
is  being  strengthened.'  It  is  now  nearly  four 
years  ago  that  he  thus  professed  his  faith 
in  Christ;  and  at  that  time  the  regiment 
was  at  Sealcote,  in  the  Punjaub,  where  it 
remained  till  May,  1857,  when  the  disturb- 
ance in  India  commenced.  It  was  then 
chosen  to  form  a part  of  the  movable  column 
of  the  Punjaub,  but  afterwards,  its  loyalty 
being  suspected,  it  was  disarmed  and  de- 
tached from  the  column,  and  eventually  sent 
to  Amritsar,  where  it  remained  for  some 
months  under  the  guns  of  the  fort.  It  was 
during  this  time  that  Jhumah  went  to  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


83 


colonel  of  the  regiment  and  told  him  that 
he  wished  to  become  a Christian.  The 
colonel  asked  him  what  made  him  entertain 
such  a desire,  and  if  the  thought  that  he 
should  benefit  himself  in  worldly  matters 
at  all  influenced  him.  He  replied,  ‘No:  I 
wish  it  because  I have  learned  that  I am  a 
sinner,  and  my  only  hope  of  salvation  is  in 
Jesus  Christ.’  The  colonel  then  gave  him 
a note,  and  sent  him  to  the  missionary,  who, 
after  questioning  him  as  to  his  wishes  and 
motives,  told  him  to  come  himself,  and  bring 
his  wife  also,  for  regular  instruction.  They 
went  regularly  once  or  twice  a week : the 
man  daily  went  either  to  the  missionary  at 
the  city  school,  or  to  the  native  preacher. 
Hera  went  to  the  wife  of  the  missionary. 
The  first  time  she  came  she  showed  her  New 
Testament,  with  the  Old  Testament  also, 
which  had  since  been  given  her.  ‘These/ 
she  said,  ‘were  her  treasures,  her  wealth, — 
more  and  dearer  to  her  than  all  her  worldly 
goods.’  As  a proof  of  her  sincerity,  it  may 
be  stated  that  when  the  regiment  was  or- 
dered to  join  the  movable  column,  she  left 


84 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


behind  her  at  Sealcote  the  best  of  her  clothes, 
&c.,  taking  with  her  only  the  clothes  she 
had  on  and  her  Bible,  or,  to  use  her  own 
words,  ‘her  wealth/  All  her  property, 
clothes,  jewels,  and  tools  belonging  to  her 
husband,  of  the  value  of  about  five  hundred 
rupees,  was  subsequently  lost  in  the  mutiny 
at  Sealcote. 

“After  some  weeks,  circumstances  re- 
quired that  the  regiment  should  be  sent  a 
few  miles  away  from  Amritsar,  and  its  des- 
tination was  quite  uncertain.  On  this  ac- 
count the  couple  became  very  anxious  to  be 
speedily  baptized,  and  one  day  Hera,  with 
tears  in  her  eyes,  begged  an  English  friend 
to  intercede  for  them  that  they  might  soon 
receive  baptism.  ‘Otherwise/  she  said, 
‘they  feared  the  regiment  would  be  moved 
before  they  had  come  into  their  hands/ — 
meaning  before  they  had  been  admitted  into 
the  visible  church  as  Christians, — and  that 
this  would  be  a great  grief  to  them.  A few 
days  before  that  which  had  been  fixed  upon 
for  their  baptism,  she  went  as  usual  to  the 
m ^sion-house. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


85 


“When  the  wife  of  the  missionary  said  to 
her,  ' You  are  soon  now  to  be  baptized,  and 
perhaps  afterwards  the  men  and  women  of 
your  regiment  will  annoy  and  persecute  you 
and  ridicule  you,  and  say  you  are  gone  mad 
by  becoming  a Christian.  Do  you  think  you 
will  be  able  to  bear  their  ridicule  and  an- 
noyance? or  will  you  be  afraid  of  them,  and 
be  ashamed  of  being  taunted  with  being  a 
Christian  ?’  She  looked  at  her  steadfastly  for 
a few  moments,  and  then  said,  with  great 
earnestness,  'Why  should  I be  afraid  of 

THEM,  OR  WHY  SHOULD  I BE  ASHAMED? 

Should  I be  afraid  of  man,  who  can  only 

KILL  THE  BODY?  No:  I WOULD  RATHER 

FEAR  God,  who  can  not  only  kill  my 

BODY,  BUT  CAN  AFTERWARDS  CAST  MY  SOUL 

into  hell!  And  of  what  should  I be 
ashamed?  Not  of  Jesus  Christ;  for  is 

HE  NOT  MY  ONLY  SAVIOUR  FROM  SIN  AND 
ITS  PUNISHMENT  ? No.  I WILL  NEVER  BE 
ASHAMED  OF  Christ.’  On  Friday,  the  27th 
of  November  last,  they  were  baptized  by  the 
iiames  of  Abraham  and  Sarah.  Their  be- 
havior was  strikingly  serious,  and  they 


86 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


made  their  responses  with  much  earnestness 
of  manner.  Since  then,  they  have  been  very 
regular  in  their  attendance  at  public  wor- 
ship, though,  as  Hera  was  able  only  to  walk 
a very  short  distance,  and  their  camp  was 
fully  two  miles  off,  and  the  church  another 
mile  farther,  every  time  she  went  to  church 
she  had  to  pay  eight  annas  for  a conveyance. 
They  manifested  a great  desire  to  partake 
of  the  Lord's  Supper;  and,  after  some  further 
instruction  and  examination,  they  were  ad- 
mitted to  that  sacrament  on  the  first  Sun- 
day in  the  new  year.  Hera  continued  to 
come  to  visit  the  lady  of  the  missionary  till 
the  12th  of  January,  when  she  left  Amritsar 
for  Kangra.  The  last  time  this  lady  saw 
her,  she  said  she  wished  to  tell  her  some- 
thing that  was  on  her  mind, — that  during 
the  insurrection,  and  while  an  army  was  be- 
fore Delhi,  she  constantly  prayed  that  God 
would  preserve  the  dominion  of  the  English 
in  this  country,  and  that  she  then  made  a 
vow  of  an  offering  to  God  should  her  prayers 
be  heard;  that  as  yet  she  had  not  been 
able  to  fulfil  her  word,  but  that  she  would 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


87 


do  so  as  soon  as  she  had  the  ability,  and  she 
wished  to  know  in  what  way  she  should 
devote  her  offering  to  God’s  service.” 

This  brief  but  valuable  narrative  illus- 
trates the  power  of  the  written  word,  even 
when  not  supplemented  by  the  living  voice, 
and  is  a new  instance  of  the  truth  of  the 
divine  promise,  “For  as  the  rain  cometh 
down,  and  the  snow  from  heaven,  and  re- 
turneth  not  thither,  but  watereth  the  earth, 
and  maketh  it  bring  forth  and  bud,  that  it 
may  give  seed  to  the  sower  and  bread  to 
the  eater ; so  shall  my  word  be  that  goeth 
forth  out  of  my  mouth : it  shall  not  return 
unto  me  void,  but  it  shall  accomplish  that 
which  I please,  and  it  shall  prosper  in  the 
thing  whereto  I sent  it.”  Isa.  lv.  10,  11. 

This  will  also  be  prized  by  every  Chris- 
tian heart  not  only  for  the  martyr-spirit 
which  Hera  exhibited,  but  for  the  wonderful 
manner  in  which  both  she  and  her  husband 
were  brought  to  the  Saviour. 

“God  moves  in  a mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform !” 


88 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


Truly  “ His  ways  are  past  finding  out/' 
Who  would  have  expected  that  from  the  for- 
gotten book  of  the  wayside  traveller,  long 
hidden  in  the  trunk  of  this  poor  Hera, 
laughed  at  or  at  least  neglected  by  the  cap- 
tain, should,  after  twelve  years,  spring  forth 
the  seed  of  the  gospel,  which,  taking  root  in 
the  heart  of  herself  and  her  husband,  should 
produce  such  glorious  fruits?  What  more 
noble  avowal  could  have  fallen  from  the  lips 
of  the  most  favored  Christian,  than  this? — 
“Why  should  I be  afeaid  of  them,  oe 

WHY  SHOULD  I BE  ASHAMED  ? SHOULD  I BE 
AFEAID  OF  MAN,  WHO  CAN  ONLY  KILL  THE 
BODY  ? NO  : I WOULD  EATHEE  FEAE  GOD, 
WHO  CAN  NOT  ONLY  KILL  MY  BODY,  BUT  CAN 
AFTEEWAEDS  CAST  MY  SOUL  INTO  HELL. 

And  of  what  should  I be  ashamed  ? Not 
of  Jesus  Cheist;  foe  is  he  not  my  only 
Savioue  feom  sin  and  its  punishment? 
No.  I WILL  NEVEE  BE  ASHAMED  OF  CHEIST.” 
And  what  a pointed  question  is  that  of  the 
Indian  slave ! — “ Why  should  I be  ashamed  ?” 
This  is  the  spirit  of  a true  Christianity, — 
the  spirit  which  leads  us  to  undergo  pain, 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


89 


torture,  losses,  death,  rather  than  feel  ashamed 
of  Christ. 

Jhumah  and  Hera  were  not  the  only  ones 
at  Amritsar  who  deserve  a place  among  the 
records  of  Christian  constancy  in  India. 

THE  SIKH  DAOUD. 

The  Christian  Sikh,  Daoud,  had  been  a 
few  years  previously  ordained  by  Bishop  Wil- 
son, of  Calcutta,  as  the  native  pastor  over 
a small  congregation  of  native  Christians  at 
Amritsar,  where  he  was  making  full  proof 
of  his  ministry.  On  the  14th  and  the  15th 
of  May,  the  Europeans  and  native  Chris- 
tians in  Amritsar  were  in  a state  of  the 
greatest  alarm.  The  Rev.  A.  Strawbridge 
thus  describes  their  perilous  condition : — 

“ There  was  only  one  native  regiment, 
and  that,  for  the  present,  remained  peace- 
able and  quiet.  There  were,  however, 
guards  placed  at  every  house,  and  appli- 
cation was  forwarded  to  Sealcote  for  more 
European  troops  to  man  the  fort  at  Govind- 
ghur.  The  city  also  remained  apparently 
quiet;  how  long  it  might  continue  so  no  one 


90 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


could  say.  The  missionaries  accordingly  re- 
ceived intimation  from  the  authorities  to 
hold  themselves  and  their  families  in  readi- 
ness, at  a moment’s  notice,  to  flee  to  the 
fort.  The  native  newspapers  at  this  time 
openly  asserted  that  within  the  short  period 
of  three  days  British  rule  would  cease  in 
India. 

“ On  the  night  of  the  14th,  a report 
reached.  Amritsar  that  the  three  disarmed 
regiments  at  Lahore  had  rebelled,  and 
threatened  to  march  upon  Ferozepur : their 
real  destination  was  concluded  to  be  Am- 
ritsar. They  were,  however,  overawed  by 
the  decisive  conduct  of  the  authorities.  The 
artillery  was  brought  out  and  prepared  for 
action,  and  they  were  warned  that  if  they 
attempted  to  leave  their  cantonment  they 
would  immediately  be  fired  upon.  The  civil 
authorities,  sustaining  the  action  of  the  mili- 
tary officers,  hastened  to  raise  the  country; 
and  all  the  Sikh  Sirdars  promised  help. 

u On  the  receipt  of  the  intelligence  that 
the  disarmed  regiments  were  threatening 
open  rebellion,  the  European  ladies  in  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


91 


civil  lines  were  collected  to  pass  the  night 
at  the  mission-house,  so  as  to  be  in  readi- 
ness to  enter  the  fort  should  occasion  call 
for  it,  the  military  authorities  having  first 
cleared  it  of  all  native  troops  and  intrusted 
it  to  the  safe  keeping  of  European  artillery. 
The  next  day  the  fort  was  victualled  for  a 
month,  in  case  it  should  become  a refuge. 

“ On  the  next  night,  tidings  reached  Am- 
ritsar of  the  sanguinary  collision  at  Feroze- 
pur;  and,  as  this  was  marked  out  as  the 
fatal  night,  the  ladies,  at  their  own  request, 
were  introduced  into  the  fort.  The  night, 
however,  passed  over  peaceably.” 

And  now  we  see  shining  from  the  midst 
of  this  darkness  the  vigorous  faith  of  this 
native  pastor.  The  people  of  the  city  had 
begun  to  persecute  this  little  flock,  com- 
mitted to  the  care  of  Daoud,  and,  exulting 
over  their  perils,  to  assure  them  that  their 
days  were  numbered.  The  faithful  shep- 
herd went  to  the  fort  to  inform  his  friends 
of  the  dangers  by  which  he  and  his  people 
were  surrounded,  when  he  was  urged  to 
move  into  the  fort  for  safety.  To  this  invi- 


92 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


tation  he  gave  the  brave  reply  that  he 
would  rather  die  in  his  house  than  flee. 

When  urged  to  give  his  reason  for  ex- 
posing his  life  to  destruction  when  offered 
the  means  of  safety,  he  replied  that  he 
preached  daily  in  the  city,  and  exhorted  the 
people  not  to  fear  those  that  can  kill  the 
body  and  after  that  have  no  more  that  they 
can  do,  but  to  fear  Him  that  hath  power  to 
cast  soul  and  body  into  hell.  He  added 
that,  if  he  should  now  leave,  his  conduct 
would  be  opposed  to  his  teaching,  and  con- 
sequently his  preaching  would  be  without 
effect.  Our  own  missionaries  add  that 
they  felt  much  strengthened  by  the  words 
of  this  native  pastor,  who  thus  sent  back  to 
them  a large  reward  for  the  care  taken  to 
instruct  him  in  the  faith  of  Christ.  It  was 
refreshing  to  their  exhausted  spirits,  in  the 
time  of  threatening  destruction,  to  hear 
from  this  Sikh  pastor  that  the  gospel  he 
had  learned,  and  was  then  teaching,  had 
inspired  him  with  a holy  courage  to  face 
death  in  the  horrid  form  in  which  it  threat- 
ened to  advance. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


93 


Daoud  was,  however,  mercifully  shielded 
from  the  sufferings  he  was  willing  to  endure 
in  the  service  of  his  Master.  He  found  that 
he  that  loseth  his  life  for  Christ's  sake  shall 
find  it.  Although,  after  the  outbreak,  the 
rebels  in  the  city  turned  out  and  damaged 
every  house,  they  spared  all  the  residences 
of  the  missionaries,  which  they  found  to  be 
defended  by  men  from  the  neighboring  vil- 
lages who  had  been  visited  by  the  mission- 
aries and  who  came  forward  in  this  manner 
to  show  their  respect  and  gratitude.  Daoud 
has,  it  may  be  hoped,  been  spared  for  useful- 
ness as  a faithful  under-shepherd  for  many 
years  before  he  shall  be  called  to  receive  the 
crown  of  life  from  the  chief  Shepherd  and 
Bishop  of  souls. 

Six  months  later,  this  good  man  received 
a special  mercy  at  the  Lord’s  hands,  in  the 
conversion  of  his  aged  father  to  the  faith 
of  the  gospel. 


94 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  Y. 

The  American  Martyrs  of  Futteghur — Description  of 
the  Mission  by  Mr.  Walsh — Devastations  by  the  Mu- 
tineers— First  Alarms — Threats  of  the  Natives — The 
Spirit  of  the  Martyrs — Mahishanpoor  Massacre — De- 
parture for  Cawnpore — Terrors  by  the  way — Capture 
by  the  Sepoys — Death. 

Futteghur,  is  a name  which,  while  it 
brings  tears  of  sympathy  to  every  Ameri- 
can eye,  will  awaken  an  emotion  of  joy  in 
every  Christian  heart.  For  here,  at  one  of 
the  most  prosperous  and  well-managed  mis- 
sions in  India,  nobly  perished  some  of  our 
own  countrymen  and  countrywomen,  in 
the  very  midst  of  the  work ; while  not  one 
of  them  faltered  in  the, presence  of  their 
dreadful  fate.  Sad  is  it  to  recount  the  tale 
of  their  martyrdom;  but  its  horrors  are  for- 
gotten and  eclipsed  in  the  glory  of  their 
death.  As  long  as  the  mission  cause  exists 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


95 


on  earth,  and  the  roll  of  “ the  noble  army 
of  the  Martyrs”  in  heaven,  the  names  of 
Freeman,  Campbell,  Johnson,  and  Mc- 
Mullen, and  of  their  beloved  wives  and 
children,  will  live  in  the  hearts  and  cheer 
the  faith  of  Christian  missionaries,  and  shine 
with  peculiar  brightness  in  the  sacred  record 
of  heaven. 

Futteghur  was  a military  settlement  on 
the  Ganges,  one  hundred  and  eighty-four 
miles  southeast  of  Delhi.  It  had  been  the 
seat,  also,  of  a very  successful  mission. 
“From  the  organization  of  our  church  in 
1841,”  says  the  Rev.  J.  Johnston  Walsh, 
(whose  affecting  “Memorial of  the  Martyred 
Missionaries”  should  be  read  by  all  who  are 
interested  in  Christ's  kingdom,)  “ to  June, 
1857,  it  increased  gradually,  year  by  year, 
until  the  number  reached  over  one  hundred. 
Many  of  these,  however,  were  dismissed,  to 
form  or  to  help  weak  churches  in  other 
places : so  that  we  have  never  had  more  than 
eighty  native  members  at  one  time  in  con- 
nection with  us.  We  have  not  been  without 
our  revivals  in  the  church  at  Futteghur. 


96 


MARTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


In  1849,  a special  work  of  grace  was  mani- 
fested, whicli  resulted  in  the  accession  of 
twenty-eight  persons  to  the  privileges  of  the 
church.” 

A beautiful  church  had  been  erected,  a Hin- 
doo prince  (the  Maha-Eajah  Dhuleep  Singh) 
contributing  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  to 
it.  There  was  also  an  orphan-asylum,  in 
which  the  children  were  taught  weaving 
and  tent-making ; while  in  the  various 
schools  were  nearly  five  hundred  scholars. 

In  1857,  the  Eev.  Joseph  Mullens,  of  Cal- 
cutta, visited  this  Christian  oasis  in  the  vast 
heathen  desert.  “I  received,”  says  he,  “a 
most  hearty  welcome  from  the  brethren. 
During  our  brief  stay  they  showed  us  every 
department  of  their  most  useful  mission. 
We  saw  their  plain,  substantial  dwelling- 
houses  ; the  large  boarding-schools  for  boys 
and  girls;  the  long  lines  of  houses  in  the  neat 
Christian  village;  the  extensive  weaving- 
establishment;  the  tent- factory ; the  hand- 
some church;  the  English  and  native  schools; 
and  the  native  chapels,  close  by  the  city 
gate.” 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


97 


What  a change  was  wrought  on  this 
happy  scene  within  a few  short  months ! 
“ They  are  all  gone  now, — plundered,  broken, 
and  burned.  Sir  Colin  Campbell,  in  January 
last,  planted  his  camp  upon  the  mission-pre- 
mises, and  found  those  pleasant  homes  where 
prayer  had  been  offered,  wise  counsels  fol- 
lowed, and  plans  adopted  for  the  conversion 
of  the  heathen,  with  their  blackened  walls  fit 
only  to  be  the  stables  of  the  English  Lancers !” 
Mr.  Fullerton,  visiting  the  place  after 
the  mutiny  had  been  quelled,  says,  “I 
went  to  the  little  church  in  which  our  first 
annual  meeting  was  held  during  my  last 
visit  to  this  station,  and  where  only  two 
short  years  ago  I spent  one  of  the  most 
delightful  communion-Sabbaths  it  has  ever 
been  my  lot  to  enjoy.  But  where  are  my 
fellow-communicants,  who  sat  down  with 
me  then  at  the  table  of  the  Lord?  The 
Freemans,  the  Campbells,  the  Johnsons,  and 
our  other  missionary  brethren?  The  young 
convert  who  that  day  renounced  the  re- 
ligion of  the  false  prophet  and  with  tears  of 
penitence  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  people  of 


98 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


God?  Poor  Babar  Khan,  who  wept  for  joy 
over  a brother  who  was  lost  and  found?  and 
poor  Dhonkal?  The  large  number  of  native 
brethren  who  partook  with  us  of  the  feast 
which  was  spread  for  us  ? 


“ 4 All  are  scatter’d  now  and  fled, 

Some  are  living — some  are  dead ; 

And  when,  I ask,  with  throbs  of  pain. 

When  shall  all  these  meet  again  ?’ — 

The  roofless  building  and  the  blackened 
walls  reply,  Never , until  we  eat  bread  in  our 
Father's  house  above." 

When  the  news  of  the  dreadful  acts  of  the 
mutineers  reached  the  Christian  band  at 
Futteghur,  and  gradually  the  wave  of  mas- 
sacre seemed  rolling  on  to  their  own  dwell- 
ings, deep  pain  and  bitter  anguish  fell  upon 
them.  Says  Mr.  Walsh,  “They  met  and 
prayed;  they  sought  to  devise  means  of 
escape,  and  counselled  together  as  to  what 
appeared  to  be  the  best  plan.  But,  not  re- 
lying on  these,  they  daily  and  hourly  impor- 
tuned God  for  wisdom  and  direction.  As 
we  attempt  to  recall  their  feelings  and 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


99 


thoughts,  as  expressed  in  their  letters,  our 
hearts  are  filled  with  sorrow.  Rumor  after 
rumor  was  borne  to  them  of  the  approach 
of  the  revolted  troops  that  were  carrying 
fire  and  blood  through  Northern  India.  The 
suspense  was  terrible.  They  knew  not  at 
what  moment  they  might  be  murdered.  Day 
after  day  they  had  to  realize  death,  and  that, 
too,  in  a most  cruel  and  bloody  form.  Night 
after  night  they  were  kept  in  this  state  of 
alarm.  The  Mussulmans  gnashed  their  teeth 
at  them,  saying,  1 Where  is  your  Jesus  now? 
We  will  shortly  show  what  will  become  of 
infidel  dogs.’  ” 

Only  those  who  heard  this  can  appreciate 
the  horror  and  sadness  it  caused  to  the  hearts 
of  those  who  had  gone  thither  to  carry  to 
these  men  the  glad  news  of  salvation  by 
J esus.  They  would  not  and  could  not 
leave  the  native  Christians  unless  forced  to 
do  it.  Though  danger  threatened  the  na- 
tives less  than  foreigners,  yet  how  could 
they  part  from  those  over  whom  God  had 
placed  them  as  overseers?  How  touching 
and  heroic  is  their  behavior  viewed  in  this 


100  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


light ! To  fight  and  die  amid  loyal  friends 
and  followers  is  a small  thing,  compared 
with  the  fortitude  shown  in  lying  down 
night  after  night  with  mutinous  and  mur- 
derous men,  ready  and  anxious  to  dye  their 
hands  in  the  blood  of  Christians.  It  has 
been  thought  a proof  of  high  courage  to 
advance  against  hostile  batteries;  but  how 
much  more  heroic  to  stand  alone  amid  yell- 
ing and  blood-thirsty  enemies,  rather  than 
desert  one's  post!  “ They  have  their  re- 
ward!" Through  all  these  distressing  ex- 
periences, with  the  doom  of  a horrible  death 
hanging  over  them,  they  never  lost  their 
confidence  in  the  Saviour  nor  repined  at  the 
will  of  God.  “ What  is  to  become  of  us  and 
the  Lord’s  work  in  this  land,"  wrote  Mr. 
McMullen,  in  the  midst  of  the  excitement, 
“ we  cannot  tell;  but  He  reignetk;  and  in 
him  we  will  rejoice  /" 

“ Although,"  wrote  Mrs.  Johnson, — and  let 
her  golden  words  be  perpetuated  through  all 
time, — ‘ 1 Although  we  may  be  called  upon 
to  paet  with  life  foe  Cheist  and  his 
cause,  may  we  not  gloeify  God  moee  by 


MART  YES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  101 

OUR  DEATHS  THAN  BY  OUR  LIVES?  Each 
day  we  look  upon  as  our  last  upon  earth ; 
but,  oh,  how  delightful  are  our  seasons  of 
prayer  together,  imploring  the  care  and 
protection  of  God,  who  alone  can  save  us !” 
“We  have  no  place  to  flee  for  shelter,” 
wrote  Mrs.  Freeman,  “ but  under  the  covert 
of  his  wings;  and  there  we  are  safe.  Not 
but  that  he  may  suffer  our  bodies  to  be 
slain ; and  if  he  does,  we  know  he  has  wise 
reasons  for  it.  I sometimes  think  our  deaths 
would  do  more  good  than  we  would  do 
in  all  our  lives . If  so,  his  will  be  done . 
Should  I be  called  to  lay  down  my 

LIFE,  DO  NOT  GRIEVE  THAT  I CAME  HERE; 
FOR  MOST  JOYFULLY  WILL  I DIE  FOR  HlM 
WHO  LAID  DOWN  HIS  LIFE  FOR  ME.” 

Flow  beautifully  does  the  brave  old  mar- 
tyr-spirit shine  forth  in  these  two  weak  and 
trusting  women,  who  could  resignedly  and 
even  joyfully  pen  such  professions  of  faith 
when  surrounded  by  dangers  so  imminent 
and  horrible ! 

“ There  were  no  European  troops  at  Fut- 
teghur,  and  only  one  native  regiment,  which 


102  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


was  considered  more  staunch,  than  other 
native  regiments  from  the  fact  that  it  had 
served  in  Burmah  and  distinguished  itself 
for  its  fidelity  in  the  late  war.  The  alarm 
felt  was  from  the  large  bodies  of  mutineers 
either  from  Delhi,  Bareilly,  or  Oude,  who  it 
was  rumored  were  near  and  might  attack 
them  at  any  moment.  They  kept  a constant 
watch,  patrolled  their  bungalows  every 
night,  and  kept  their  horses  harnessed  and 
ready  for  flight.  On  the  3d  of  June,  inform- 
ation was  received  at  Futteghur  that  the 
troops  at  Bareilly  and  Shahjehanpore,  only 
forty  miles  distant,  had  mutinied,  and  that 
a body  of  the  Oude  mutineers,  consisting  of 
an  infantry  and  cavalry  corps,  were  march- 
ing into  the  station.  This  caused  great- 
consternation. 

“At  Shahjehanpore  the  massacre  took 
place  on  the  Sabbath  evening,  during  divine 
service.  The  Rev.  J.  McCallum,  the  mis- 
sionary, and  the  whole  congregation,  with 
the  exception  of  one  who  escaped  to  tell 
their  fate,  were  ruthlessly  slain.  Having 
held  a consultation  on  the  night  of  the  3d 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


103- 


of  June,  the  Europeans  and  others  at  Fut- 
teghur  agreed  that  it  was  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  go  to  Cawnpore,  which  lay  miles 
below  them  and  on  the  Ganges,  and,  having 
secured  boats,  arranged  to  leave  in  the  morn- 
ing. Our  missionaries  and  their  wives  and 
children  went  with  the  party.  But  these 
faithful  men  could  not  part  from  their  dear 
converts  without  returning  to  strengthen  and 
encoubage  them.  The  noble  Campbell  left 
the  party  during  the  night,  went  back  to 
the  mission-house,  and  walked  for  several 
hours  in  the  garden  with  the  native  brethren, 
exhorting  them  to  keep  the  faith  and  sus- 
taining them  by  his  prayers.  Ishwuree 
Dass,  a native  convert,  in  his  narration  of 
the  outbreak  at  Futteghur,  says,  “A  few 
minutes  before  the  missionary  families  left 
the  premises,  I had  an  interview  with 
Messrs.  Freeman  and  Campbell.  Mr.  Free- 
man had  his  eyes  full  of  tears.  Mr.  Camp- 
bell would  have  rather  laid  down  his  life  on 
the  spot.  He  did  not  seem  much  inclined 
to  leave  the  place,  and  asked  me  whether 
they  did  right  in  going  away.  He  was 


104  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

anxious  on  account  of  Mrs.  Campbell  (who 
was  always  of  delicate  health,  and  at  that 
time  more  so  than  usual)  and  his  two  little 
children.  For  his  part,  he  was  ready  to  be 
cut  to  pieces.” 

The  party  dropped  down  the  Ganges  in 
boats.  Eight  miles  from  Futteghur,  at 
B,awalganj,  they  found  the  villagers  assem- 
bled on  the  bank,  intent  on  plunder;  but,  see- 
ing the  Europeans  too  numerous,  they  did  not 
molest  them.  A few  miles  farther  on,  at  Sin- 
garampore,  a large  body  of  Sepoys  and  others 
fired  on  them,  without,  however,  injuring  any 
one.  Again,  at  Kasampore,  they  received  seve- 
ral volleys  from  the  villagers,  wounding  one 
in  the  thigh.  Returning  the  fire,  eight  of  the 
villagers  were  killed ; and  the  boats  passed  on. 
On  the  evening  of  the  6th  of  June,  fastening 
their  boat  to  the  shore  in  order  to  cook  a 
little  food,  they  were  surrounded  by  a large 
party  under  one  of  the  Indian  zemin- 
dars or  landholders,  and  only  succeeded  in 
getting  off  by  paying  him  five  hundred  dol- 
lars. For  two  days  they  proceeded  towards 
Cawnpore  without  stoppage,  until  on  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  105 

8th,  the  water  being  very  low,  they  struck 
on  an  island  five  miles  from  Cawnpore. 
They  were  unable  to  communicate  with  Sir 
Hugh  "Wheeler,  who  was  closely  beset  in 
Cawnpore  by  the  demon  Nena  Sahib,  and 
were  consequently  confined  on  the  island 
four  days.  On  the  12th  of  June,  some 
Sepoys  crossed  the  bridge  connecting  Oude 
with  Cawnpore,  and  fired  on  them,  killing  a 
lady,  child,  and  native  nurse.  The  party 
then  deserted  the  boats  and  hid  themselves 
in  the  long  rushes  which  grew  on  the  island. 

At  length,  exhausted  from  exposure,  and 
feeling  that  their  last  day  on  earth  had  come, 
they  prayed,  sung,  and,  having  exhorted  each 
other,  threw  their  weapons  into  the  river. 
In  a short  time  a boat-load  of  Sepoys  crossed 
over,  and,  making  the  party  prisoners,  con- 
veyed them  to  the  Cawnpore  side.  Here 
they  pleaded  their  peaceful  character  to 
their  hard-hearted  captors.  u Some  few 
were  disposed  to  let  them  go  free;  but 
others  said,  ‘No,  take  them  to  Nena  Sahib, 
and  let  the  unclean  foreigners  be  rooted 
out/”  The  latter  prevailed.  Accordingly, 


106  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

they  commenced  binding  with  a small  cord 
the  prisoners  two  by  two,  husband  and  wTife, 
brother  and  sister.  Mr.  Campbell,  thus  tied 
to  his  wife,  carried  in  his  arms  his  little  boy 
Willie,  and  a friend  carried  his  little  daugh- 
ter Fannie.  They  were  now  ready  for  the 
march.  It  wTas  almost  evening,  and  they 
were  about  to  start,  when  Mr.  Maclean,  an 
English  gentleman  in  the  company,  made  a 
final  effort  for  the  release  of  the  party. 
Knowing  the  Hindoos’  intense  love  of 
money,  he  offered  the  Sepoys  three  hundred 
thousand  rupees  (one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars)  to  give  the  party  their 
freedom.  But  there  was  no  hesitation 
manifested  in  the  reply  made:  — “It  is 
blood  we  want, — not  money.”  Thus  tied 
together,  they  were  marched  towards  Cawn- 
pore,  and  on  nearing  the  town  were  met  by 
three  carriages  sent,  with  a refinement  of 
barbarity,  by  Nena  Sahib  to  convey  the  la- 
dies of  the  party,  who  could  scarcely  walk,  to 
the  scene  of  their  death.  One  short  hour 
they  were  shut  up  in  a house  by  themselves, 
and  then  were  led  out  on  the  plain  of  Cawn- 


Massacre  of  Futteghur  fugitives  at  Cawnpore.  p.  107. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  107 

pore,  close  to  the  mission-house,  and  all 
ruthlessly  shot.  Their  death  was  agonizing, 
but  not  long  delayed.  Peace  be  to  their 
unburied  ashes  ! May  their  precious  names 
never  be  forgotten ! May  the  turf  ever  be 
green  on  the  spot  stained  with  their  honored 
blood!  May  the  pearly  dew  and  the  re- 
freshing rain  fall  gently  upon  the  sod ! and, 
while  the  winds  of  heaven  breathe  over  it 
soft  and  low,  may  a voice  ever  rise  like  in- 
cense before  the  throne  of  mercy,  “Father, 
forgive  them ; for  they  know  not  what  they 
do!”  * 

The  night  of  sorrow  is  gone,  and  the  day 
of  gladness  has  dawned  brightly  upon  them. 
The  cry  of  anguish  has  been  turned  into 
songs  of  exultation.  The  blood-stained  mar- 
tyr-garments have  been  exchanged  for  robes 
washed  and  made  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.  Could  the  angel  who  stood  by  them 
in  the  dark  hour  of  death  reveal  all  that 
transpired  at  that  moment, — the  composure 
with  which  they  laid  their  dying  heads  on 
the  Saviour’s  bosom,  the  accents  of  love 
which  he  whispered  in  their  ears,  the  beams 


108  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

of  joy  that  were  shed  down  upon  their  trou- 
bled spirits  from  heaven,  and  the  bright 
visions  of  heavenly  glory  that  were  revealed 
to  them, — it  would  be  more  than  mortal  man 
could  endure.  And,  now  that  they  are  ex- 
ultant in  heaven,  counting  it  their  highest 
honor  that  they  were  called  to  suffer  a mar- 
tyr’s death,  why  should  we  not  wipe  away 
our  tears,  and  rejoice  with  them  that  “ the 
Lord  God  Omnipotent  reigneth?” 

Such  is  the  affecting  memorial  of  the  fate 
of  our  countrymen.  To  their  friends  the 
recollection  of  their  sudden  and  unexpected 
death  must  have  been  cause  of  bitter  agony, 
though  tempered  by  the  recollection  that  their 
end  was  mild,  compared  with  that  of  hundreds 
of  ladies  and  children, — some  of  Britain’s  fair- 
est flowers.  To  us,  while  sadness  is  mingled 
with  admiration  at  their  constant  and  un- 
daunted spirit,  their  history  presents  the 
brightest  exemplars  of  the  beauty  of  the  Chris- 
tian life,  and  of  the  calm,  inexpressible  gran- 
deur of  the  Christian  death.  How  finely  has 
the  spirit  which  animated  the  martyrs  at  Fut- 
teghurbeen  portrayed  by  a Christian  poet! — 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY, 


109 


“ The  love  of  Christ  doth  me  constrain 
To  seek  the  wandering  souls  of  men, 

With  cries,  entreaties,  tears,  to  save, 

To  snatch  them  from  the  gaping  grave. 

“ For  this  let  men  revile  my  name: 

No  cross  I shun,  I fear  no  shame: 

All  hail,  reproach  ! and  welcome,  pain 
Only  thy  terrors,  Lord,  restrain. 

“ My  life,  my  blood,  I here  present, 

If  for  thy  truth  they  may  be  spent: 
Fulfil  thy  sovereign  counsel,  Lord: 
Thy  will  be  done,  thy  name  adored  ! 

“Give  me  thy  strength,  0 God  of  power, 
Then  let  winds  blow  or  thunders  roar: 
Thy  faithful  witness  will  1 be  : 

’TlS  fix’d:  I CAN  DO  ALL  THROUGH  THEE.” 


10 


110  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Cawnpore — Treachery  of  Nena  Sahib — Gallant  Defence 
of  the  Garrison — The  “Well  of  Cawnpore” — Frightful 
Scenes — Letters  of  Rose  M. 

Cawnpore  was  a military  station  of  great 
importance,  situated  midway  between  Luck- 
now and  Allahabad.  At  this  place  there 
was  a considerable  European  settlement, 
consisting  of  merchants,  and  civil  and  mili- 
tary officers  of  the  East  India  Company. 

On  the  17th  of  May,  accounts  of  the  dis- 
aster at  Meeroot  reached  Sir  Hugh  Wheeler, 
who  was  in  command  of  this  post, — a veteran 
of  fifty  years’  standing,  and  one  of  the  best 
officers  in  the  Indian  army. 

But,  though  brave  as  a lion,  he  had  under 
his  charge  not  only  the  European  residents 
of  the  town,  but  the  families  of  her  Majesty’s 
32d,  then  at  Lucknow;  while,  to  defend  them 
against  more  than  three  thousand  Sepoys 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  Ill 

and  the  fierce  rabble  that  filled  the  town,  he 
had  only  about  sixty  artillery-men  and  the 
officers  of  the  native  regiments.  Every 
possible  preparation  that  time  would  admit 
of  was  made.  Under  all  the  circumstances, 
the  European  barracks  and  hospital-build- 
ings seemed  to  be  the  most  eligible  places 
for  shelter ; and  these  he  immediately  occu- 
pied, surrounding  them  with  such  earthworks 
and  defences  as  the  exigencies  of  the  moment 
allowed. 

Near  Cawnpore,  at  Bithoor,  there  dwelt, 
in  great  magnificence,  one  whose  perfidy 
and  crimes  have  made  his  name  execrable 
now  and  forever.  This  wretched  man,  who, 
as  was  before  intimated,  was  a graduate  of 
an  Anglo-Indian  college  and  a man  of  great 
literary  culture  and  ability,  had  begun  his 
career  of  crime  by  forging  the  will  of  a late 
benefactor  and  robbing  his  widow  of  her 
inheritance.  By  his  apparent  preference 
for  English  customs  and  attainments,  and 
by  a splendid  hospitality  to  Europeans, 
Nena  Sahib  had  worked  himself  into  the 
good  graces  of  the  British  civilians  and 


112  MARTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

officers,  and,  among  others,  of  Mr.  Hillersdon, 
the  collector  at  Cawnpore.  He  evinced  the 
greatest  desire  to  assist  in  quelling  the  re- 
bellion among  his  countrymen,  and,  having 
unfortunately  been  confided  in,  agreed  to 
raise  fifteen  hundred  men  and  at  once  aid 
in  putting  down  any  rising  at  Cawnpore. 

On  the  21st  it  became  evident  that 
the  outbreak  had  commenced.  Sir  Hugh 
Wheeler  at  once  took  measures  for  the 
safety  of  the  Europeans.  They  were  ga- 
thered into  the  barracks.  The  Sepoys  re- 
fused to  allow  the  treasure  to  be  removed 
to  a place  of  safety;  and  at  this  moment 
Nena  Sahib  disclosed  his  true  intentions. 
Seizing  the  treasure,  he  attacked  the  bar- 
racks. > 

“Then  commenced  a defence  as  distin- 
guished for  its  heroism  and  patient  en- 
durance as  for  the  hideous  catastrophe  with 
which  it  closed.  The  attack  was  directed 
in  person  by  Nena  Sahib.  His  force — in- 
creased hourly  by  the  arrival  of  mutineers 
from  Allahabad  and  other  sections,  and  by 
the  accession  of  all  the  brigands  and  armed 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


113 


rabble  of  the  district — was  at  least  ten  times 
that  of  the  brave  little  garrison.  Every 
building  that  could  from  any  point  command 
the  barracks  was  crowded  with  Sepoys,  who 
poured  a constant  stream  of  bullets  upon 
the  devoted  garrison,  while  the  artillery 
hurled  their  deadly  missiles  upon  - the  frail 
buildings  that  could  not  shelter  them. 
Their  sufferings  were  fearful.  The  sick  and 
wounded — men,  women,  and  children — were 
crowded  together  into  the  smallest  possible 
space;  and  this,  under  the  burning  heat  of 
an  Indian  summer,  became  the  keenest  tor- 
ture. The  wind  came  like  hot  air  from  a 
furnace.  All  necessaries  were  supplied  in 
small  rations ; and  water  failed  them.  The 
only  well  was  in  the  intrenchment.  No 
water  could  be  drawn  except  in  the  even- 
ing after  the  firing  had  ceased.  That  was 
the  solitary  opportunity  when  in  darkness 
they  could  bury  their  dead ; and  the 
work  had  to  be  done  in  haste.  It  was  a 
nightly  work.  No  day  passed  without  its 
deaths.  All  ages  and  all  classes  had  one 
. grave, — an  old  well  in  one  of  the  intrench- 

1C* 


114  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

ments.  There  the  survivors  hid  hurriedly 
the  body  of  child  or  wife.  The  rugged  sol- 
dier, and  the  lady  who  till  then  had  never 
known  fatigue,  had  one  common  burial- 
place. 

“Few  escaped  from  that  bloody  siege;  but 
there  have  been  preserved  diaries  and  me- 
moranda the  most  affecting  that  have  ever 
been  written,  and  letters  full  of  comfort  to 
those  who  were  living  in  peace,  from  writers 
who  knew  that  they  were  hourly  drawing 
near  to  torture  and  death." 

From  the  13th  to  the  24th  of  June 
the  gallant  defenders  held  out, — though 
their  barracks  had  been  burned,  and  many 
of  their  wounded  men  had  perished  with 
them.  Their  water  failed.  The  solitary  well 
was  dry.  Half-rations  only  were  served. 
Soldiers  died  of  their  wounds,  and  ladies 
from  sheer  fright  and  exhaustion.  On  the 
24th  the  garrison  surrendered  to  Nena 
Sahib,  who  took  a solemn  oath  on  the 
water  of  the  Ganges,  the  goddess  Gunga, 
that  he  would  have  them  safely  conveyed  to 
the  river,  and  thence  to  Allahabad  in  boats. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY,  115 

Scarcely  had  they  entered  the  boats  with 
the  women  and  children,  and,  with  new 
hopes  of  life,  pushed  from  the  shore,  when 
a masked  battery  was  opened  upon  them 
and  the  Sepoys  began  a murderous  fire. 
The  boatmen  deserted  them,  and  the  boats, 
with  one  exception,  drifted  to  the  bank, 
where  the  unhappy  fugitives  were  secured. 
Those  men  of  the  party  who  had  not  been 
either  drowned  or  shot  were  carried  back 
before  Nena  Sahib.  Here  they  wrere  drawn 
up  to  be  shot;  but  before  the  fatal  moment 
a clergyman  begged  permission  to  read 
prayers.  A few  moments  were  allowed  them ; 
and  then  they  were  shot  down  by  their 
cruel  captors. 

The  women  and  children  were  shut  up  in 
one  building.  We  have  already  seen  that 
on  the  12th  of  June  Nena  Sahib  had  but- 
chered the  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  fugi- 
tives from  Futteghur.  Shortly  after  his 
massacre  of  the  brave  defenders  of  Cawn- 
pore,  “on  hearing,1 ” says  Havelock,  “that 
the  bridge  on  the  Pandoo  Nuddee  had  been 
forced,  he  ordered  the  immediate  massacre 


116  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

of  the  wives  and  children  of  our  British  sol- 
diers still  in  his  possession;  which  was  car- 
ried out  by  his  followers  with  every  con- 
comitant of  barbarous  malignity.” 

When  the  gallant  Havelock  had  stormed 
Cawnpore,  the  soldiers  were  led  to  the 
scene  of -this  terrible  butchery.  11  Barely 
had  men  looked  upon  a more  sickening 
sight.  The  very  blood  in  some  places  of 
the  floor  went  over  the  soldiers’  shoes. 
Steeped  in  that  blood  they  found  locks  of 
ladies’  hair,  leaves  of  religious  books,  the 
bonnets  and  hats  of  little  children  and 
their  mothers’  combs,  in  strange  confusion.” 
On  the  wall  were  inscribed  the  messages  of 
dying  mothers  to  their  countrymen,  and 
the  pious  prayers  and  hopes  of  Christian 
believers. 

Outside  the  house  was  the  well,*  into 
which  the  dead  had  been  thrown  for  burial, 
and  the  wounded  for  death.  Their  corpses 
had  been  heaped  together,  and  were  still 
uncovered ! 


* See  illustration. 


Well  at  Cawnpore. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


117 


Among  the  Futteghur  fugitives  who  were 
sacrificed  by  the  treachery  of  Nena  Sahib 
was  a family  consisting  of  a gentleman 
who  was  a lieutenant  in  the  Bengal  En- 
gineers, his  pious  lady,  and  their  child. 
About  a fortnight  before  their  massacre, 
this  Christian  lady  wrote  to  her  relatives  in 
England  a full  record  of  the  dreadful  cir- 
cumstances in  which  they  were  placed, 
when  anticipating  from  their  infuriated 
enemies  the  horrible  death  which  awaited 
them.  Their  letters  were  originally  printed 
for  private  circulation ; and  those  who  have 
been  permitted  to  see  them,  while  feeling 
the  deepest  sorrow,  have  at  the  same  time 
felt  the  utmost  gratitude  in  the  perusal 
of  these  satisfactory  proofs  that  the  Lord 
was  present  with  his  servants  when  about 
to  fall  under  the  weapons  of  their  sangui- 
nary foes.  They  are,  indeed,  calculated  to 
fulfil’  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  first 
issued, — “to  soothe  and  comfort  many  hearts 
lacerated  by  the  sore  bereavements  of  this 
time  of  trial,  or  trembling  under  intense 


118  MART  YES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

anxiety/’  and  to  “ be  a lamp  to  guide  many 
into  the  way  of  peace.” 

Although  they  were  at  first  intended  to 
meet  the  eyes  of  relatives  and  friends*  they 
have  been  so  highly  prized  for  the  evidence 
they  furnish  of  the  power  of  the  divine 
grace  to  make  the  heart  triumphant  over 
the  fear  of  death  in  its  most  horrid  forms, 
that  they  ought  no  longer  to  be  withheld 
from  the  public.  In  deference  to  the  feel- 
ings of  the  afflicted  relatives  of  the  writer, 
her  name  is  withheld ; and  it  is  hoped  that 
they  will  feel  some  satisfaction  in  knowing 
that  many  will  now  receive  instruction  and 
comfort  from  the  words  in  which  she,  “ be- 
ing dead,  yet  speaketh,”  and  testifies  to 
the  power  of  a living  faith  in  a living 
Saviour. 

The  first  of  these  letters  is  dated — 

“Futteghur,  May  16,  1857. 

“My  own  dearest  Papa: — You  will  all, 
I fear,  be  in  a state  of  great  alarm  about  us, 
as  you  must  have  seen  from  the  papers  what 
a sad  feeling  is  rising  in  this  part  of  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  119 

country  among  our  native  troops,  and  tlie 
fearful  position  we  are  placed  in,  not  know- 
ing how  to  act  or  what  to  do,  and  greatly 
fearing  a general  insurrection. 

“ The  Meeroot  dak  (post)  was  stopped  for 
four  days ; and  the  natives  have  been  assas- 
sinating all  the  English  they  could  get  hold 
of,  women  and  children  not  being  spared. 

“¥e  hear  that  Mrs.  C.  has  left  Mynpoory 
in  fear  and  gone  to  Agra,  and  that  the  W.s 
have  come  here;  though  I fear  we  are  not  a 
bit  better  off,  as  there  are  no  English  troops 
here  either. 

“ People  are  in  a state  of  great  alarm; 
and  we  are  perfectly  helpless  should  the 
natives  rise  here.  I suppose  all  the  ladies 
would  have  to  go  to  the  fort ; but  our  'house 
is  a very  long  way  from  it.  John  has  been 
loading  his  gun  and  rifle,  as  it  is  not  safe  to 
be  without  them  loaded : one’s  life  is  not 
certain  for  a day.  He  was  going  down  his 
road  on  Monday,  but  thinks  now  it  will  be 
his  duty  to  stay  here,  in  case  of  an  outbreak, 
for  all  hands  would  be  wanted. 

“ I think  John  feels  much  the  state  of 


120  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

things,  and  thinks  our  Government  are  to 
be  blamed  for  giving  the  natives  secular  edu- 
cation without  religious,  which  only  arms 
them  with  power  which  may  be  turned 
against  us.  But  I trust  God  will  pardon 
us,  and  not  pour  his  fury  upon  us  for  all 
our  forgetfulness  of  him.  Last  year,  he 
sent  us  the  pestilence ; now,  we  are  trem- 
bling lest  his  sword  should  be  drawn  out ; 
but  I trust  we  may  be  stirred  up  to  call 
upon  God,  and  be  reminded  wherein  our 
great  strength  lies. 

“We  have  been  searching  out  the  beauti- 
ful Scripture  passages  in  which  God  has 
promised  deliverance  from  our  enemies,  and 
wisdom  to  know  how  to  act  in  cases  of 
danger.  How  doubly  precious  are  such  pass- 
ages, and  with  what  force  do  they  come  at 
the  time  of  need!  None  ever  called  upon 
the  Lord  in  trouble  but  they  were  delivered : 
sno  I trust  we  may  turn  unto  him  with  deep 
contrition,  and  beseech  him  to  glorify  his 
great  name  and  show  his  power  among  the 
heathen. 

“We  cannot  say,  ‘Pray  for  us.’  Ere 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  121 

you  get  this  we  shall  be  delivered,  one  way 
or  another.  Should  we  be  cut  to  pieces, 
you  have,  my  precious  parents,  the  know- 
ledge that  we  go  to  be  with  J esus,  and  can 
picture  us  happier  and  holier  than  in  this 
distant  land:  therefore,  why  should  you 
grieve  for  us?  You  know  not  what  may 
befall  us  here;  but  there  you  know  all  is 
joy  and  peace,  and  we  shall  not  be  lost,  but 
gone  before  you.  And  should  our  lives  be 
spared,  I trust  we  may  live  more  as  the 
children  of  the  Most  High,  and  think  less 
about  hedging  ourselves  in  with  comforts 
which  may  vanish  in  a moment.  Truly, 
‘ this  is  not  your  rest,’  is  more  written  on 
every  thing  in  India  than  elsewhere;  but, 
comforting  thought ! in  heaven  we  have  an 
enduring  substance;  and  the  more,  in  Gods 
providence,  we  are  led  to  feel  this,  the  hap- 
pier we  shall  be,  even  below. 

“ Do  not  be  over-anxious  about  us,  dear 
relatives  and  friends.  In  India  we  have 
the  same  Ruler,  the  same  merciful  Keeper, 
in  the  Almighty;  and  you  have  implored 
11 


122  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

him  to  be  gracious  to  us,  though  you  knew 
not  our  danger. 

“We  are  quite  well,  I am  thankful  to  say ; 
but  much  sickness  is  about,  and  this  year 
also  promises  to  be  an  unhealthy  one.  I 
hope  you  will  get  this  letter.  How  is  it  we 
have  heard  from  no  one  this  mail?  I trust 
no  news  is  good  news. 

“ Mary  is  quite  well  again,  and  cutting 
her  last  tooth.  We  have  now  really  got  the 
hot  weather : it  has  set  in  late. 

“Good-bye,  my  own  dear  parents,  sisters, 
and  friends.  The  Lord  reigns  ! He  sitteth 
above  the  water-flood ! We  are  in  the  hol- 
low of  his  hand,  and  nothing  can  harm  us. 
The  body  may  become  a prey,  but  the  souls 
that  he  has  redeemed  never  can. 

“With  much  love, 

“Your  own  devoted  child, 

“Rose  M.” 


“ Futteghuk,  May  21,  1857. 

“ My  own  beloved  Family: — It  maybe 
interesting  to  you  to  receive  a full  account 
of  our  state  of  mind  during  this  alarming 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  123 


time : so  I will  commence  giving  you  par- 
ticular^ and  hope  it  may  not  only  arouse 
your  interest  and  sympathy,  but  also  your 
thankfulness  to  Almighty  God  for  giving  us 
strength  according  to  our  day  and  supporting 
us  under  such  heavy  tidings.  We  certainly 
have  been  on  the  verge  of  an  awful  precipice, ' 
from  which  it  would  have  appeared  there 
could  be  no  escape ; and,  thinking  of  the  few 
European  troops  in  India  in  the  case  of  a 
general  insurrection,  we  could  not  have  stood. 
Last  week  we  heard  there  was  a bad  feeling 
amongst  the  troops  at  Meeroot,  on  account 
of  the  cartridges. 

“ On  Saturday,  Dr.  Maltby  came  to  lance 
Marys  gums,  and  asked  if  we  had  heard  of 
the  dreadful  massacre  at  Meeroot.  Upon 
our  replying,  ‘ No/  he  read  us  an  account 
of  the  murders  there.  The  news  shocked  us 
much;  and  poor  John  felt  that  he  could  not 
attend  to  road-work.  He  received  a letter 
from  Major  W.  about  the  roads,  but  com- 
mencing, 1 If  reports  are  true,  we  shall  have 
to  fight,  instead  of  attending  to  road-work/ 
We  could  not  eat  much  breakfast,  and  went 


124 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


to  our  room,  as  is  our  custom,  to  read  and 
pray  together.  John  read  an  appropriate 
chapter  : we  then  searched  for  others,  and 
very  many  comforting  ones  we  found,  and 
then  in  prayer  committed  our  lives  to  God. 
In  the  middle  of  the  day  we  received  a letter 
from  Colonel  S.,  (commanding  the  station 
troops,)  saying,  if  any  thing  serious,  or  likely 
to  be  serious,  occurred,  a gun  would  be  fired, 
so  that  we  might  fly  to  the  colonel’s  pucca- 
house,  and  that  we  were  to  hold  ourselves  in 
readiness  to  fly  any  hour  of  the  day  or  night 
that  we  might  hear  it. 

“ John  then  loaded  his  gun  and  rifle;  and 
as  we  knew  we  could  not  well  hear  the  gun 
out  here,  we  thought,  if  there  was  any  like- 
lihood of  danger,  we  had  better  go  at  once 
into  the  station,  for  we  knew  the  L.’s  would 
take  us  in.  We  first  determined  to  go  over 
to  the  missionaries,  and  see  what  they 
thought  of  doing,  as  we  should  not  like  to 
leave  them  all  alone,  especially  as  they  had 
no  arms.  We  found  they  had  invited  the 
other  two  American  missionaries  to  come  up 
and  stay  with  them,  as  they  lived  in  a soli- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


125 


tary  road  leading  into  the  city.  ¥e  deter- 
mined all  should  come  and  live  in  our  pucca- 
house;  (as  there  is  danger  in  a bungalow 
being  set  on  fire,)  or  go  into  the  station. 
Accordingly,  all  went  into  the  station,  to 
gather  what  news  we  could,  and  then  agreed 
to  return  and  consult  together  where  we 
should  go  for  the  night.  The  panic  was 
very  great;  carriages  and  buggies  crowding 
to  the  S.'s  and  P.’s,  the  natives,  seemingly,  all 
on  the  alert.  Guns  were  entering  the  colonels 
compound,  and  the  whole  place  seemed  in  a 
commotion.  The  report  was  that  the  in- 
surgents— who  had  murdered  nearly  every 
one  in  Delhi,  and  got  possession  of  it — were 
on  their  way  to  Futteghur;  and  we  knew 
that  it  would  be  scarcely  probable,  in  case 
of  so  large  a body  coming  on  us  suddenly, 
that  our  troops  would  stand;  and,  should 
they  join  the  insurgents,  escape  would  be 
impossible,  we  having  no  European  troops 
here.  After  returning  to  the  missionaries’ 
house,  and  having  prayed  and  read  together, 
(a  little  company  of  ten,)  we  determined  to 
go  into  the  station.  John  and  I went  home, 


126  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

took  Mary  out  of  bed,  got  into  the  double- 
seated  buggy  with  the  Ayah : this  was  nine 
o’clock  in  the  evening,  and  the  picket  sta- 
tioned in  one  of  the  roads  would  not  at  first 
allow  us  to  pass.  We  went  to  the  L.’s,  who 
had  just  gone  into  their  bedroom:  they  re- 
ceived us  most  kindly.  We  told  them  two 
missionaries  and  their  wives  were  coming  to 
them  for  protection,  and  would  occupy  their 
spare  rooms ; but  we  would  be  very  happy 
if  they  would  allow  us  to  sleep  on  the  floor 
in  Mr.  L.’s  dressing-room, — which  we  did, 
John  sleeping  with  his  revolver  by  his  side. 
We  made  a bed  on  two  chairs  for  Mary.  In 
the  morning  (Sunday)  we  heard  several  bad 
reports : one,  that  another  jail  was  broken 
open ; that  the  Meeroot  one  was,  is  true, — 
and  many  confined  therein  were  murderers. 
We  went  to  church:  very  few  people  were 
there,  and  fear  seemed  written  on  every  face : 
it  was  most  noticeable : everybody  felt  that 
death  was  staring  them  in  the  face,  and 
every  countenance  was  pale.  Our  church- 
service  and  the  lessons  seemed  quite  suited 
to  our  circumstances ; and  I am  sure  all  who 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  127 


were  in  God’s  house  must  have  felt  comfort 
in  pouring  out  their  hearts  together. 

“Mr.  Fisher  preached  on  the  text,  ‘What 
time  I am  afraid,  I will  trust  in  thee.’  After 
church,  we  breakfasted;  then  all  the  gen- 
tlemen at  the  station  met  at  the  magistrate’s 
bungalow,  to  determine  what  steps  to  take 
on  the  approach  of  the  enemy.  It  was 
agreed,  and  notices  sent  round  to  that  effect, 
that,  upon  the  gun  firing  twice,  every  one 
should  Fush  to  the  fort,  which  would  be  vic- 
tualled beforehand  in  case  of  any  thing 
occurring.  There  was  no  evening  service, 
as  it  was  thought  dangerous  for  us  to  leave 
our  bungalow;  but  the  missionaries  staying 
with  us  read  and  prayed  with  us,  and  the 
remainder  of  the  time  we  sang  hymns. 

“Sunday  evening  we  got  news  that  the 
insurgents  were  all  in  Delhi, — that  they  had 
got  possession  of  the  fort,  and  did  not  in- 
tend leaving  it.  This  news  relieved  every- 
body : for  my  own  part,  I suppose  I felt  the 
reaction,  for  I felt  more  sad  than  I had  done 
before.  I felt  that  I had  been  so  living  in 
the  unseen  world,  and  that  now  I was  brought 


128  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

back  to  earth  again.  However,  our  repose 
was  not  to  last  long. 

11  Monday,  May  18. — We  got  news  from 
Shahjehanpore  that  some  bungalows  had 
been  burned,  and  it  was  thought  perhaps 
the  regiment  there  might  have  mutinied: 
so  it  was  agreed  that  four  of  the  gentlemen 
(including  John)  should  go  over,  armed,  to 
a place  called  Allyghur,  to  try  and  raise 
troops  in  the  district,  and,  if  necessary,  to 
check  the  progress  of  the  insurgents. 

u May  19. — At  three  o’clock  in  the  morn- 
ing the  party  started,  and  I went  into  Mrs. 
L.’s  room  to  console  her;  for  there  was  no 
knowing  if  our  husbands’  lives  might  or 
might  not  be  spared.  Mrs.  P.  had  asked  us 
to  come  and  stay  with  them  while  John  and 
Mr.  L.  were  away : so  we  went  there. 

“May  20. — We  heard  that  it  was  all 
pretty  quiet  at  Shahjehanpore,  and  that 
staying  out  might  only  excite  suspicion: 
so  they  were  relieved  from  their  hot  situa- 
tion, (being  in  a tent,)  and  ordered  to  return, 
which  they  did  that  evening. 

“Thursday,  May  21. — Hearing  that  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


129 


insurgents  still  held  Delhi  in  their  hands, 
and  would  not  be  likely  to  leave  it  to  come 
to  us,  John  and  I returned  to  our  house. 

11  May  22. — Could  not  settle  to  any  thing. 
John  received  very  few  public  letters,  and 
felt  disinclined  to  attend  to  roads,  &c.,  and 
I also  felt  unsettled.  In  the  evening,  went 
into  the  station  to  hear  if  any  news  had 
been  received.  Walked  in  the  park  with 
Mr.  E.,  who  told  us  that  the  Agra  and 
Mynpoory  dak  was  not  in.  On  our  way 
home,  called  at  Mr.  P.’s,  (magistrate;)  found 
most  of  the  gentlemen  at  the  station  there, 
and  noticed  sad  news  written  pn  their  coun- 
tenances. I went  in  to  the  ladies,  and  John 
stayed  outside  with  the  gentlemen.  I had 
to  send  and  hurry  John,  as  there  is  a guard 
of  Sepoys  on  the  road  leading  out  of  the 
station,  to  prevent  any  one  coming  in  at 
night,  and  I was  afraid  we  should  not  be 
able  to  get  home  to  our  little  one.  John 
told  me  in  the  buggy  that  Mr.  P.  thought 
all  was  up  with  us,  as  he  had  news  that  the 
9th,  of  Allyghur,  of  whom  every  one  thought 
so  well,  had  mutinied,  and  were  marching 


130  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

down  upon  us.  If  you  look  at  the  map, 
you  will  see  how  near  we  are  to  that  place. 
Things  looked  black,  and  every  one  thought 
so;  and  we  were  ordered  not  to  stir  out  of 
our  bungalows  that  night  unless  a gun 
fired,  when  we  were  all  to  rush  to  the 
station.  After  looking  at  the  map,  we  began 
to  consider  whether  escape  out  of  the  station 
would  be  advisable,  as  it  seemed  impossible 
that  we -could  reach  the  fort  or  the  colonel's 
in  safety ; but  we  thought  we  could  not  be 
sure  of  any  place,  and  that  it  would  be 
worse  to  be  murdered  on  the  roads  and 
one,  perhaps,  left  solitary.  Went  into  our 
room,  and  committed  ourselves  to  the  Al- 
mighty. 

“ Saturday , May  23. — Early  in  the  morn- 
ing, we  met,  as  we  were  desired,  at  Mr.  P.’s. 
The  colonel  returned  from  haranguing  the 
troops,  who  still  faithfully  promised  to  stand 
by  us : he  said  nothing  further  could  be 
done;  that  if  we  should  hear  for  certain 
that  the  enemy  was  coming  on  us  in  Futte- 
ghur,  then  something  should  be  done. 

“We  can  now  only  throw  ourselves  on 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


131 


Providence,  and  beseecli  him  in  his  mercy  to 
stay  the  enemy  for  the  glory  of  his  great 
name;  for  ' wherefore  should  the  heathen 
say,  Where  is  now  their  God?’  We  have 
nothing  to  put  our  trust  in  but  the  Lord; 
and  he  will  not  fail  us.  Our  extremity  may 
be  his  opportunity.  We  are  quite  prepared 
for  the  worst,  and  feel  that  to  depart  and 
be  with  Christ  is  far  better.  The  flesh  a 
little  revolts  from  cold-blooded  assassina- 
tion, but  God  can  make  it  bear  up.  I can 
easily  fancy  how  David  preferred  to  fall  into 
the  hand  of  God  to  that  of  man. 

“ There  are  a good  many  bad  men  in  the 
city,  ready  at  any  time  to  rise ; and  from  them 
our  lives  and  property  are  not  safe.  After 
breakfast,  we  read  and  prayed  as  usual, 
took  a nap,  repeated  all  the  comforting 
texts  we  could  think  of,  and  have  since  been 
singing  hymns. 

“ We  feel  that  in  the  position  in  which  we 
are  placed,  with  our  lives  in  our  hand, 
(though — happy  thought ! — they  are  in  God’s 
hand  too,)  and  death  pursuing  us,  this  is 
all  we  can  do,  and  the  only  way  of  keeping 


132  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


oar  minds  quiet.  Truly  have  we  found  that 
promise  fulfilled  to  us, — 'Thou  wilt  keep 
him  in  perfect  peace  whose  mind  is  stayed  on 
thee.’  Much  comfort  have  we  in  religion: 
without  it,  especially  at  such  a time  as  this, 
we  should  be  miserable.  At  three  o'clock 
that  afternoon,  we  went  over  to  the  mission- 
aries, found  that  the  two  from  the  city  had 
again  fled  to  the  others,  (there  were  four 
families  of  the  American  Presbyterian  mis- 
sionaries in  Futteghur,)  and  agreed  to  sleep 
in  the  same  bungalow,  that,  if  any  thing 
occurred,  they  might  die  together  or  escape 
together.  They  wanted  us  to  stay  with 
them,  but  we  thought  that  the  insurgents 
could  not  be  down  upon  us  so  soon  from 
Allyghur.  "We  agreed  that  if  the  gun 
fired  it  would  be  useless  attempting  to  es- 
cape to  the  colonel’s:  so  we  thought  of 
slipping  away  out  of  the  station,  and  going, 
perhaps,  to  Chibramhow,  to  the  Moonsif 
there,  who  knew  Mr.  M.  and  professes  to 
have  much  interest  in  John,  and  asking  him 
to  hide  us.  The  missionaries  thought  of 
borrowing  the  native  women’s  chuddahs, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  133 

(the  sheet  they  throw  over  their  heads,)  and 
escaping  with  the  native  Christians  to  some 
zemindar  in  a near  village,  who  said  he 
would  protect  them  if  necessary. 

11  June  1. — A week  has  passed  since 
writing  the  above,  and  one  of  great  sus- 
pense: several  bad  rumors  and  reports  have 
been  afloat,  but  we  have  not  given  much 
heed  to  them,  not  wishing  to  have  our  minds 
disturbed.  Every  evening  we  have  had  tea 
- with  the  missionaries,  and  spent  the  evening 
in  prayer,  praise,  and  reading  the  Scrip- 
tures. I was  in  hopes  before  the  mail  went, 
to  be  able  to  tell  you  something  about  the 
battle  at  Delhi,  on  which  so  much  depends : 
there  was  a report  that  it  had  been  retaken, 
but  I believe  it  is  not  true. 

“The  Lieutenant-Governor,  Mr.  C.,  has 
shown  much  wisdom  and  energy  in  these 
trying  times,  when  every  one  should  do  their 
best  to  put  a stop  as  quickly  as  possible  to 
such  a rising.  We  can  only  hope  it  is  not 
general,  and  that  troops  from  England  will 
be  sent  us,  and  that  we  shall  never  again  be 
left  to  the  mercy  of  native  troops.  Though 
12 


134  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

every  thing  seems  quiet  here,  yet  we  have 
had  the  insurgents  very  close;  and  Futte- 
ghur  is  a large  city,  should  the  bad  people 
in  it  be  inclined  to  rise,  setting  apart  the 
Sepoys ; and  we  have  no  European  regiment 
here,  and  the  gentry  are  not,  as  in  other 
places,  making  preparations  in  case  of  dan- 
ger, for  fear  of  exciting  suspicion  and  mu- 
tiny. But  every  one  seems  to  think,  in  case 
of  danger,  we  should  not  be  safe  in  the  fort, 
and  could  not  defend  it.  Each  family  seems 
to  have  planned  their  own  way  of  escape 
in  case  they  have  to  flee  for  their  lives. 
Some  families  have  taken  boats  between 
them,  and  intend  escaping  down  the  river; 
but  we  think  the  only  thing  would  be  to 
hide  ourselves  in  some  native  hut,  or  some- 
where, until  the  insurgents  have  done  all 
the  harm  they  wish  in  the  station;  for, 
although  places  below  are  quiet,  yet  they 
are  in  the  same  uncertainty  and  suspense  as 
ourselves,  and  there  is  no  saying  how  long 
they  will  keep  so.  The  dak  (mail)  up  coun- 
try is  not  open,  so  we  do  not  know  how  our 
dear  friends  are,  or  how  Henry  and  Charlotte 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


135 


are.  We  trust  the  Punjaub  is  quiet : it  was; 
but  there  is  no  saying  how  the  contagion 
may  have  spread.  For  a few  days  last  week 
we  had  some  delightful  rain,  and  people 
began  to  think  the  rains  were  beginning 
very  early;  but  it  all  passed  off,  and  we  are 
having  it  very  hot,  so  that,  what  with  the 
heat  and  constant  fear,  we  cannot  sleep 
much  at  night.  The  rain  seems  to  have 
been  providentially  sent  to  expedite  the 
marching  of  our  troops.  Why  they  have 
not  arrived  at  Delhi  and  commenced  and 
finished  their  attack,  we  cannot  think,  and 
are  sadly  afraid  that  the  enemy  will  slip 
through  their  fingers ; but  we  cannot  get 
tidings  of  them  yet. 

“How  we  shall  value  peace  and  security, 
if  we  can  ever  feel  them  again ! Some 
gentlemen  say  India  will  never  feel  secure 
again;  but  I trust  we  may,  though  I fear 
our  lives  will  for  some  time  be  in  danger. 
All  the  bad  people  in  the  country  seem 
ready  to  rise,  and  only  waiting  for  an  ex- 
cuse, and  many  murderers  have  been  let 
loose  amongst  us  by  the  opening  of  the  jail. 


136  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

Mr.  Power  is  defending  Mynpoory  nobly, 
and  John’s  sergeant  there  is  going  about 
trying  to  keep  down  the  robbers. 

“How  little  do  our  dear  ones  in  England 
know  what  is  befalling  us  here  ! But  they 
have  told  us  they  always  pray  for  us ; and 
the  same  heavenly  Father  is  watching  over 
us  both.  The  Lord  is  our  refuge  and  strength, 
a very  present  help  in  time  of  trouble  : so  we 
will  not  fear  : and  do  not  you  fear,  dear  ones. 
You  may  indeed  pity  those  who  have  no 
God  to  go  to,  and  no  hope  beyond  this  world; 
but  we  have  made  the  Most  High  our  de- 
fence, and  knowT  that  we  shall  not  be  greatly 
moved.  He  will  not  suffer  the  heathen  to 
prevail,  though  he  may  appear  to  do  so; 
but  his  kingdom  shall  come,  and  though  we 
may  be  removed,  he  can  raise  up  others. 
And  what  does  death,  or  rather  what  does 
not  death,  do  for  God’s  children  ? they  go  to 
their  reconciled  Father  in  Christ  Jesus, — to 
a land  of  purity,  happiness,  and  holiness. 

“We  have  not  heard  of  our  cousins  0.  W. 
and  C.  It. : the  officers  in  their  regiment  do 
not  appear  to  have  escaped ; but  we  sincerely 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  137 

trust  they  have,  as  they  intended  going  to 
the  Dhoons  for  last  month’s  shooting,  and 
were  not  to  return  till  the  29th. 

“I  suppose  every  bungalow  at  Delhi, 
Meeroot,  and  Etah  is  burned  down.  I am 
thankful  to  say  we  are  all  well.  Dear  Mary, 
as  I told  you  before,  has  been  dangerously 
ill;  but  she  is,  I am  thankful  to  say,  quite 
well  now.  I am  feeling  better  just  now 
than  I generally  do  in  my  state.  God’s 
hands  are  indeed  underneath  us,  supporting 
our  bodies  and  comforting  our  souls.  I fear 
I could  not  do  much  in  the  flying  way  now; 
but  as  my  day,  so  shall  my  strength  be; 
and  I do  not  fear  any  thing  that  may  come 
upon  us,  so  that  quietness  and  assurance 
under  a Father’s  protection  and  smiles  may 
ever  be  given  us.  We  try  not  to  let  those 
around  us  see  that  we  do  not  feel  safe : we 
drive  out,  to  give  confidence  to  the  people, 
and  I always  try  to  wear  a smiling  face, 
though  one  sees  strange  faces  and  knots  of 
armed  men  about. 

“I  hope,  my  precious  family, you  will  not 

alarm  yourselves  about  us ; we  are  in  God’s 
12* 


138 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


hands,  and  feel  very  happy : indeed  we  do . 
I leave  the  newspapers  to  tell  yon  all  par- 
ticular horrors,  but  I would  always  cheer 
you  by  my  letters.  It  has  not  been  my 
habit  to  write  our  troubles  home ; and  may- 
be you  think  that  John  and  I havd  had 
none ; for  why  should  we  distress  you  with 
them?  We  know  we  have  your  love  and 
sympathy,  but  that,  before  your  letters 
reach  us,  we  may  have  had  deliverance  from 
every  fear  and  trouble ; and  we  have  One 
on  whom  we  cast  all  our  care,  and  from 
whom  we  receive  immediate  consolation  and, 
in  his  own  time,  relief.  He  has  delivered 
us  from  troubles  past,  and  will  also  in  pre- 
sent and  future  difficulties  : so,  dear  parents, 
brothers,  and  sisters,  leave  us  in  Gods 
hands,  fearing  no  evil : all  is  well,  and  all 
will  be  w'ell  with  us  : living  or  dying,  we  are 
the  Lord’s.  Let  this  be . your  happy  assu- 
rance : you  will  either  have  your  children, 
your  brother  and  sister,  living  on  earth,  to 
praise  God  for  his  deliverance,  or  dwelling 
in  heaven,  to  praise  him  for  all  the  riches 
of  his  grace. 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  139 

“ I often  wish  our  dear  Mary  was  now  in 
England;  but  God  can  take  care  of  her  too, 
or  he  will  save  her  from  troubles  to  come, 
by  removing  her  to  himself.  God  bless  you, 
my  dear  relatives  and  friends ; and  may  we 
all  meet  above ! 

“I  am  so  thankful  that  I came  out  to 
India  to  be  a comfort  to  my  beloved  John, 
and  a companion  to  one  who  has  so  given 
his  heart  to  the  Lord ! 

“The  circumstances  and  positions  in  which 
we  have  been  placed,  during  our  sojourn  in 
India,  have  made  the  promises  of  God’s 
word  so  sweet,  and  the  consolations  of  re- 
ligion so  unspeakably  great,  besides  endear- 
ing us  to  one  another  in  a degree  and  way 
which  a quiet  English  home  might  npt  have 
done.  We  shall  have  been  married  three 
years  on  the  29th  of  this  month.  Think  of 
us  on  that  day.  W ith  much  love  from  us  both, 

“'Believe  me,  your  ever  affectionate  one, 

“Bose  M.” 

We  add  an  extract  from  a letter  dated 
21st  May,  to  a lady  at  Chunar,  who  had 


140  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

written  to  beg  Mr.  and  Mrs.  M.  to  join  her 
at  the  fort,  as  being  a safer  place : — 

“ I think  and  trust  you  will  be  safe  in 
such  a good  fort  as  Chunar.  Thank  you  for 
wishing  us  to  fly  to  it;  but  duty  would 
oblige  my  husband  to  remain  where  he  is, 
and  we  only  hope  he  will  be  useful;  for 
every  military  man  should  hold  himself 
ready  to  serve  his  country’s  cause  if  called 
upon;  and  I would  not  think  of  leaving 
him,  as  I should  be  miserable  away  from 
him,  and  would  rather  die  with  him  than 
escape  and  not  know  how  he  is  faring. 

“We  must  ever  remember  that  the  Lord, 
who  ruleth  the  raging  of  the  people,  is  our 
only  fort  and  place  of  security.  It  may  be  of 
his  wisdom  ordained  that  our  bodies  perish : 
if  so,  we  would  give  them  up  willingly, — for 
our  souls  no  one  can  destroy,  and  they  would 
only  be  ushered  into  everlasting  glory. 

“John  and  I feel  quite  composed,  for  we 
know  that  a hair  of  our  heads  cannot  fall  to 
the  ground  without  his  knowledge : we  are 
in  his  hands  for  life  or  death,  and  only  seek 
that  his  great  name  may  be  glorified.” 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  • MUTINY.  141 

"Well  may  an  eloquent  and  pious  writer, 
in  his  comments  on  these  affecting  records, 
say,  “We  have  conveyed  but  a very  im- 
perfect idea  of  the  profound  faith,  the  great 
composure,  the  thoughtful  tenderness,  and 
the  pure  love,  which  look  out  from  every 
line.  We  have  no  idea  who  the  writer  was; 
but  this  we  know,  that  she  has  added  one 
more  to  the  long  martyr-roll  of  Christian 
women,  whose  calm  and  saint-like  faces  have 
blanched  no  jot,  nor  quivered  in  one  nerve, 
at  the  sight  of  torture  and  the  sword,  and 
whose  deaths  remain  a glory  and  a posses- 
sion for  the  whole  Church.” 

Surely  we  need  add  nothing  to  these  pre- 
cious words  from  the  pen  of  this  sainted 
lady, — words  suffused  with  love  to  her  Sa- 
viour and  resignation  to  his  will. 

The  writer,  with  those  whom  she  loved 
so  dearly,  together  with  the  missionaries, 
fell  under  the  volleys  of  the  blood-thirsty 
followers  of  Nena  Sahib  at  Cawnpore,  whither 
they  had  gone  by  boat  with  the  English  resi- 
dents of  Futteghur. 


142  MARTYFS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Mission  in  the  Jungle — Gorruckpoor — Indian  Blos- 
soms— The  Protection  of  the  Government  withdrawn 
— The  English  Residents  leave  the  Town — Farewell  of 
the  Missionary  to  the  Native  Christians — Trials  of 
Native  Christians — Happy  Reunion — Allahabad — Re- 
volt of  the  Sepoys — Murder  of  Officers  and  Europeans 
— Treatment  of  Native  Christians — Gopee  Nauth 
Nundy — Another  Hindoo  convert. 

In  the  year  1824,  a mission  was  instituted 
at  Gorruckpoor,  in  Bengal.  Lord  William 
Bentinck,  whose  name  is  prominent  among 
the  many  noble  supporters  of  the  missionary 
work  in  India,  granted  to  this  mission  a 
large  tract  of  unreclaimed  forest-land.  Here, 
in  the  wild  jungle,  where  once  the  roar  of 
wild  beasts  and  the  chattering  of  monkeys 
were  the  only  sounds  which  broke  the  stern 
repose,  soon  rose  the  modest  dwellings  of  the 
missionaries  from  far  off-lands,  who  had  come 
to  plant  the  seed  of  the  word  amid  these 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


143 


desert  scenes ; and  from  them  the  Christian 
song  of  praise  fell  on  the  ear  with  sweet  and 
hallowed  cadence. 

The  mission  was  very  prosperous,  and  in 
the  rebellion  furnished  ample  evidences 
that  the  word  had  taken  deep  root  and  was 
flourishing  in  full  vigor  in  the  hearts  of 
the  converts.  The  Rev.  Michael  Wilkinson, 
who  was  connected  with  the  mission  at  its 
outset,  published  in  1844  a little  work 
giving  an  account  of  some  of  these  “ Indian 
Blossoms/' 

One  letter  out  of  several  addressed  to  him 
when  leaving  for  England  may  not  be  un- 
interesting. It  evinces  deep  piety,  and 
anxiety  for  the  progress  of  the  truth  among 
the  countrymen  of  the  writer.  It  is  written 
by  a native  of  Gorruckpoor,  and  has  the 
figurative  luxuriance  of  an  Oriental  pen- 
man : — 

“Holy  father,  peace  be  with  you ! 

“ You  are  going  to  the  land  of  your 
fathers.  May  your  health  be  soon  restored, 
and  quickly  may  you  come  back  to  us ! 

“ Our  earthly  paradise  is  darkened  with 


144  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

the  cloud  of  gloom  that  hangs  over  it.  The 
carpet  of  sin  is  spread  over  the  face  of  the 
earth,  and  thousands  are  running  over  it  to 
the  region  of  eternal  woe.  Oh,  when  will 
the  cloud  be  dispersed,  and  the  carpet  of  life 
be  spread  ? In  the  natural  heavens  the  sun 
on  the  horizon  is  the  harbinger  of  a bright 
and  clear  day.  As  he  rises  in  his  strength, 
the  clouds  are  rent  and  retire  to  their  watery 
bed,  and  the  earth  is  covered  with  light  as 
with  a garment.  Beautiful  emblem  of  Jesus, 
the  Sun  of  Righteousness ! whose  rising  and 
whose  rest  wilb  bring  on  the  glorious  day 
when,  as  Isaiah  prophesies,  ‘the  light  of  the 
moon  shall  be  as  the  light  of  the  sun,  and 
the  light  of  the  sun  shall  be  sevenfold,  as  the 
light  of  seven  days.'  We  have  seen  that 
sun  on  the  horizon;  but  its  progress  is  slow 
towards  its  full  height.  What  impedes  it? 
We  read  in  the  sacred  pages  that  in  the 
days  of  King  Joshua,  God  commanded,  ‘Sun, 
stand  thou  still  F And  there  was  a cause; 
for  the  Lord  fought  for  Israel.  But  at 
whose  command  stands  still  the  Sun  of 
Righteousness  ? Was  it  light  sent  forth 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  145 

but  to  mock  us?  Are  the  prayers  of  the 
faithful  wanting?  Is  the  chariot  of  the. 
gospel  stopped  for  want  of  horses  and  men 
to  draw  it?  Why  shines  the  sun  in  its  full 
blaze  of  brightness  on  the  land  whence  you 
came«and  whither  you  are  going?  Oh,  you 
who  bask  in  its  blaze,  to  you  it  is  said, 

‘ Arise,  shine;  for  thy  light  is  come.’  It  is 
written,  ‘No  man,  having  lighted  a candle, 
putteth  it  under  a bushel,’  &c.  To  do  so 
is  unwise  as  well  as  ungenerous;  because 
the  light  may  go  out  and  you  yourselves  be 
left  in  the  dark.  These  are  the  thoughts 
of  an  aged  creature  of  God,  who  long  walked 
in  darkness,  but  into  whose  heart  the  Day- 
spring from  on  high  has  shone,  and  daily 
offers  up  his  fervent  cry  that  that  light  may 
increase  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect 
day,  as  saith  wise  King  Solomon,  and  hopes 
at  length  to  be  like  the  woman  in  the  last 
revelation  of  the  mystery  of  God,  forever 
fixed  in  the  sun. 

“The  salutation  of  Sheikh  Razi-oo-Deen, 
your  own  child  in  Christ  Jesus. 

“ Gorruckpoor,  1840.” 


13 


146  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

Gorruckpoor  was  situated  in  the  heart  of 
the  mutinous  district;  and  the  Government, 
finding  it  impossible  to  maintain  a sufficient 
force  to  protect  it,  sent  a circular  informing 
the  English  residents  that  protection  would 
cease  to  be  afforded  on  the  13th  of  August. 
The  Rev.  H.  Stern,  who  was  the  missionary 
here,  thus  writes: — 

“ 1 have  now  the  sad  duty  to  inform  you 
that  Government  and  all  the  English  resi- 
dents have  marched  out  of  Gorruckpoor, 
under  the  protection  of  the  Goorkah  force, 
and  encamped  on  the  othe^  side  of  the  river. 
At ‘three  o’clock  p.m.  on  the  13th  inst.,  Eng- 
lish protection  ceased  to  be  afforded  to  any 
individual  in  Gorruckpoor,  as  we  were  in- 
formed by  a circular  from  the  authorities. 
No  choice,  therefore,  was  left  to  me  but  to 
pack  a few  things  together  and  follow  the 
English  flag  wherever  it  may  be  planted. 
It  was  a very  sad  sight,  thus  in  one  long 
procession  to  leave  the  station;  and  I could 
not  help  thinking  of  King  David  when  he, 
with  his  nobles,  fled  from  his  son  Absalom. 

“Here  we  are,  then,  in  camp  these  two 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  147 

days,  within  sight  of  Gorruckpoor;  and,  if 
the  report  prove  true,  we  are  to  march  on 
to-morrow.  As  to  the  mission,  I have  made 
such  arrangements  as  I could  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. The  schools  were  closed  the 
day  before  we  left;  and  the  whole  mission 
property  in  Gorruckpoor,  together  with  Ba- 
sharatpoor,  and  every  thing  belonging  to  that 
establishment,  were  made  over  by  me  to  the 
rajah  of  Gopalpoor,  one  of  those  rajahs  who 
have  hitherto  assisted  Government  in  the 
suppression  of  disturbances,  and  to  whom 
the  authorities  made  over  the  whole  station 
and  district.  The  rajah  of  Gopalpoor  has 
agreed  to  protect  the  mission  property, 
and  to  afford  every  assistance  and  protection 
to  the  native  Christians  residing  at  Basha- 
ratpoor ; and  I have  agreed — of  course  on  my 
own  authority  (for  there  was  no  time  allowed 
to  write  to  Calcutta) — to  make  over  all  the 
revenue  of  Basharatpoor  for  one  year  to  the 
rajah.  As  soon  as  we  return,  (which  I trust 
may  be  after  a short  time,)  the  rajah  will 
make  over  the  property  to  me,  or  my  suc- 
cessor. All  this  is  written  down  on  paper, 


148  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

and  a copy,  with  my  signature  and  Charles 
Dass’s,  is  in  the  raj ahs  hands,  and  the  copy 
with  the  rajah’s  signature  and  seal  is  in  my 
hands. 

“Since  the  13th  inst.,  a guard  of  twelve 
men  has  been  stationed  at  Basharatpoor. 
There  are  left  there  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
two  Christian  souls : the  rest  are  partly  with 
me  as  servants,  or  have  found  employment 
with  some  gentlemen;  and  three  families 
proceeded  down  the  river  in  charge  of  some 
property  belonging  to  the  judge. 

“ Yesterday  afternoon  I visited  the  village 
for  the  last  time.  The  whole  number  col- 
lected in  the  catechist’s  house,  where  I read 
the  71st  Psalm  and  offered  up  a prayer. 
When  I departed,  the  whole  number  broke 
out  in  tears,  especially  the  women  and  chil- 
dren. It  was  a most  affecting  scene,  and  I 
had  great  difficulty  myself  to  remain  firm. 
I hope  I may  see  them  all  again  after  a 
short  interval.  I have  made  them  over  to 
the  Lord,  who  can  move  the  heart  of  the 
rajah  to  remain  faithful  to  his  word,  and  to 
protect  the  Christian  flock  now  in  the  wil- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  149 

derness  without  a shepherd.  I cannot  help 
feeling  most  sad  at  leaving  these  poor 
Christians  behind.  I trust  I have  done  to 
the  best  of  my  judgment.  Should  any  evil 
befall  them, — which  the  Lord  forbid ! — may 
it  not  be  laid  to  my  charge !” 

These  Christian  converts  were  exposed 
during  the  two  succeeding  months  to  great 
persecution ; but,  out  of  more  than  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty,  the  seven  whom  the  mis- 
sionary mentions  in  the  following  account 
seem  to  have  been  the  only  ones  who 
faltered : — 

“ During  one  dacoity,  (inroad  of  armed 
men,)  one  of  the  Christians  received  a deep 
sword-cut  in  his  back ; others  were  beaten ; 
the  women,  who  usually  ran  into  the  jungle, 
were  abused;  and  the  catechist  in  charge, 
Raphael,  seems  to  have  been  particularly 
exposed  to  the  fury  of  the  enemy.  The 
maltreatment  which  he  received  very  much 
hastened  his  death,  which  happened  on  the 
12th  of  October.  A few  days  after  this  their 
best  bullocks  were  seized,  and  several  of  the 
men  carried  before  the  chakladar,  who  kept 


150  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

them  prisoners  for  two  days.  On  learning 
that  they  were  Christians,  he  ordered  them 
to  deny  their  faith  and  become  Mussulmans. 
One  of  the  chakladars  men  then  interfered, 
and  said  that  these  Christians  had  been 
neither  Hindoos  nor  Mussulmans,  but  were 
brought  up  as  orphans  in  the  Christian  re- 
ligion, and  would  therefore  not  be  received 
by  either  of  these  persuasions. 

“ Nevertheless,  the  chakladar  insisted  on 
their  becoming  Mohammedans,  and  re- 
quested them  to  look  out  for  a maulvi,  (Mo- 
hammedan priest.)  The  seven  Christians, 
as  they  tell  me,  appeared  to  consent  to  this 
arrangement.  Upon  this  they  were  allowed 
to  go  to  their  homes.  When  they  got  there, 
they  told  their  brethren  what  had  happened. 
They  then  consulted  together  what  to  do. 
They  left  in  small  parties,  by  stealth  at 
night,  during  several  successive  days,  the 
first  party  leaving  on  the  20th  of  October. 
After  they  had  agreed  to  meet  at  a place 
called  Shahpoor,  to  the  east  of  Gorruckpoor, 
and  beyond  the  boundary  of  their  district, 
they  all  took  the  road  through  the  jungle, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  151 

and,  after  three  days’  travelling,  they  all 
reached  Shahpoor  in  safety,  only  one  party 
being  robbed  on  the  road.  The  others  saved 
a few  clothes ; and  some  even  escaped  with 
their  carts  and  a pair  of  bullocks.  Shahpoor 
not  being  far  from  Bettiah,  a Boman 
Catholic  establishment,  three  families  went 
there  for  protection : the  rest  intended  to 
go  to  Benares.” 

The  little  flock  were  happily  reunited  in 
three  months  after  their  separation. 

“The  native  Christians,  no  less  than  my- 
self, were  very  happy  to  see  each  other 
again  after  a separation  of  upwards  of  three 
months.  Before  I came  up  to  them,  where 
they  were  encamped  in  a large  mango  grove, 
the  children  came  running  out  to  meet  me, 
and  to  conduct  me  into  the  midst  of  their 
parents  who  surrounded  me.  Every  one  now 
commenced  to  tell  his  tale  of  the  late  trials 
and  privations,  in  which  all  took  an  equal 
share.  We  all  then  had  prayers,  to  thank 
the  good  Lord  and  Shepherd  of  our  souls  for 
thus  having  preserved  us  and  saved  us  from 
many  dangers,  and  for  having  given  us  this 


152  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

first  token  of  mercy  in  having  permitted  us 
thus  to  meet  again.  To  Him  be  all  praise 
and  glory!” 

Allahabad,  situated  at  the  confluence 
of  the  Jumna  with  the  Ganges,  is  memo- 
rable as  well  for  the  terrible  and  melancholy 
fate  of  the  European  residents,  as  for  the 
devotion  to  the  truth  exhibited  by  the  Hin- 
doo Christians.  In  one  day,  after  the  most 
sacred  assurances  of  their  fidelity,  the  na- 
tive Infantry  suddenly  changed  from  orderly 
Sepoys  to  mutinous  demons.  After  inducing 
the  residents  to  leave  the  fort,  in  which  they 
had  taken  refuge,  and  commit  themselves 
into  their  hands,  they  despatched  several 
of  their  officers,  and  shockingly  murdered 
the  trusting  Europeans.  Some  were  slowly 
hacked  to  pieces : one  family,  consisting  of 
three  generations,  was  burned  to  death : in 
some  cases,  the  nose,  ears,  lips,  fingers,  and 
toes  of  the  victims  were  chopped  off, — the 
limbs  afterwards  hacked  to  pieces ! Nothing 
was  left  undone  that  savage  fury  could  sug- 
gest. Innocent  children  did  not  escape  the 
hands  of  the  murderers,  being  put  to  death 


MART  YES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


153 


in  the  most  cruel  manner  before  the  eyes  of 
their  mothers.  These  horrors  were  mostly 
perpetrated  against  the  English  residents, 
who  were  peculiarly  hateful  to  the  Moham- 
medans. But  the  native  Christians  did  not 
escape  many  severe  trials  of  their  faith. 

Many  of  the  native  Christians  did  not 
deem  it  necessary  for  their  safety  to  enter 
the  fort;  and  they  and  their  families  were 
apprehended  by  the  authority  of  the  maul- 
vis.  Their  families  were  incarcerated  and 
exposed  to  every  insult  and  privation ; while 
the  native  Christian  ministers  and  teachers 
were  put  into  the  public  stocks,  and  exposed 
there  for  nearly  a week,  night  and  day,  with 
scarcely  any  refreshment;  while  savage  and 
infuriated  fanatics  were  often  brandishing 
swords  over  them,  and  threatening  them 
with  the  most  horrible  mutilations  unless 
they  forswore  their  Christian  faith  and  em- 
braced Mohammedanism. 

Gopee  Nauth  Nundy  was  a convert,  and 
a regularly-ordained  missionary  to  his  own 
countrymen.  The  eminent  Dr.  Duff  gives 
us  the  following  account  of  the  persecution 


154  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

of  this  faithful  and  remarkable  man,  and 
of  others  who  triumphed  in  that  hour  of 
trial : — 

Calcutta,  Noy.  G,  1857. 

It  is  no  longer  doubtful  that  India  has 
now  had  its  first  Protestant  native  martyrs, 
— martyrs,  who  have  laid  down  their  lives 
for  the  testimony  of  Jesus, — martyrs,  who 
have  been  cruelly  put  to  death  by  relent- 
less Mohammedans,  simply  for  professing 
that  “only  name  given  under  heaven  where- 
by men  can  be  saved/'  God,  in  mercy,  grant 
that  their  blood,  as  in  the  days  of  old,  may 
become  the  seed  of  the  native  Evangelical 
Church  of  India ! 

These  bloody  butcheries  of  native  Chris- 
tians by  the  hands  of  the  followers  of  the 
false  prophet  took  place  chiefly  at  Delhi, 
Bareilly,  and  Futteghur.  Two  of  those 
slaughtered  at  the  first  of  these  places  were 
men  of  high  position  and  influence  in  society : 
— one,  a sub-assistant  surgeon  in  the  service 
of  the  East  India  Company ; the  other,  Pro- 
fessor of  Mathematics  in  the  Government 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  155 

Delhi  College.  Both  had  embraced  Chris- 
tianity in  their  riper  years,  when  occupying 
the  situations  which  they  filled  with  so  much 
credit  to  themselves  and  such  entire  satis- 
faction to  their  employers.  The  surgeon, 
about  a quarter  of  a century  ago,  received 
his  early  education  in  our  Calcutta  institu- 
tion, and  there  imbibed  those  first  principles 
of  Jehovah's  holy  oracles,  which  clung  to 
him  through  all  vicissitudes  of  life,  until  at 
last  they  ripened  into  mature  convictions, 
which  issued  in  his  openly  professing  the 
faith  of  Jesus.  A blessed  illustration  this 
of  the  sureness  of  the  promise," Cast  thy 
bread  upon  the  waters,  and  thou  shalt  find 
it  after  many  days."  When  at  Delhi,  about 
the  close  of  1849,  I had  long  and  earnest 
interviews  with  himself  and  the  native 
mathematical  professor:  they  were  then  still 
only  inquirers;  but  shortly  afterwards,  in 
my  own  native  land,  I was  privileged  to  hear 
of  their  baptism.  Their  career  has  now  been 
mysteriously  cut  short, — since,  from  their 
social  position  and  influence,  much  might 
have  been  achieved  by  them  in  advancing 


156 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


the  cause  of  Jesus  among  their  benighted 
countrymen.  So  would  we,  in  our  short- 
sightedness; be  ready  to  conclude.  But 
God's  ways  are  not  as  our  ways.  Out  of 
their  death — a blessed  exchange  to  them- 
selves— he  may  bring  forth  matter  for  the 
advancement  of  his  cause  on  earth  and  the 
promotion  of  his  own  glory. 

Of  sonje  other  native  Christians;  it  may 
be  truly  said  that,  though  not  actually 
slaughtered;  they  underwent  all  the  horrors 
of  the  fiery  trial  of  a living  martyrdom, 
and  came  forth  from  the  furnace  unscathed. 
To  the  case  of  one  of  these,  Gopee  Nauth 
Nundy,  I think  it  seasonable  to  draw  special 
attention,  as  he  is  one  of  the  earliest  con- 
verts of  our  own  mission, — having  been  one 
of  the  first  set  of  converts  baptized  by  me, 
as  far  back  as  the  close  of  1832.  He  has 
for  some  years  past  been  an  ordained  mi- 
nister in  connection  with  our  missionary 
brethren  of  the  Old-School  American  Pres- 
byterian Church.  A year  or  two  after  his 
baptism,  he  had  gone  to  the  Northwest,  to 
take  charge  of  a Christian  school,  main- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  157 

tained  by  pious  British  officers  at  Futteh- 
pore,  between  Allahabad  and  Cawnpore. 
Naturally  attached  to  Presbyterianism,  he 
was  very  properly  led  to  join  the  American 
Presbyterian  missionaries  when  they  settled 
in  that  quarter.  To  them,  especially  on 
their  first  arrival,  he  was  enabled  to  render 
very  essential  service;  and  ultimately,  find- 
ing him  in  every  way  worthy,  they  solemnly 
ordained  him  as  a minister  of  the  gospel. 
From  his  excellent  talents,  remarkable  con- 
sistency and  integrity  of  conduct,  gentlemen 
high  in  the  East  India  Company’s  Civil  Ser- 
vice repeatedly  pressed  him  to  accept  of 
honorable  situations  under  them,  with  a salary 
double,  treble,  or  even  quadruple  what  he 
could  ever  expect  to  obtain  as  a native  mis- 
sionary. But,  to  his  credit,  it  must  be 
stated  that  he  steadfastly  resisted  all  these 
allurements,  preferred  being  engaged  di- 
rectly in  the  cause  of  evangelism,  the  cause 
of  th°  gospel  of  Christ,  at  any  salary,  how- 
ever low,  to  being  engaged  in  the  cause  of 
Coesar,  however  honorable,  or  at  any  salary, 
however  high.  At  a time  when  so  tre- 

14 


158  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


mendous  a cry  has  been  raised  about  the 
heathen  natives  of  India,  because  of  the 
atrocities  committed  by  them,  it  is  proper 
to  fasten  on  a case  of  this  kind,  to  show 
what  a transmutation  the  gospel  can  effect 
in  their  character,  and  thus  to  point  to  the 
real  and  only  true  remedy  of  poor  India’s 
manifold  evils  and  wrongs. 

After  laboring  very  successfully  with 
the  American  missionaries  at  Futteghur, 
which  lies  between  Cawnpore  and  Bareilly, 
he  returned,  some  years  ago,  to  his  old  sta- 
tion of  Futtehpore.  There  he  labored  alone. 
Futtehpore  being  a civil  station,  he  min- 
istered to  the  British  as  well  as  to  the 
natives;  and  to  the  right-minded  of  the 
former  his  services  were  always  most  ac- 
ceptable. By  his  untiring  energy  and  in- 
defatigable industry  he  succeeded,  chiefly 
through  the  contributions  of  British  resi- 
dents, in  building  mission-houses,  rearing 
chapels,  and  planting  schools.  And  what  is 
better,  through  God’s  blessing  on  his  faith- 
ful, prayerful  labors,  a native  church,  num- 
bering several  scores,  inclusive  of  men, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY,  159 

women,  and  children,  was  gathered  by  him 
and  carefully  nurtured.  His  work  attracted 
so  much  attention  that,  about  two  years 
ago,  the  late  Hon.  W.  Colvin,  governor  of 
Agra,  visited  him,  inspected  his  schools,  &c., 
and  expressed  the  highest  satisfaction  with 
all  he  saw  and  learned. 

In  May  last,  after  the  terrible  massacres 
at  Meeroot  and  Delhi,  alarm  and  panic 
spread,  with  electric  rapidity,  northward 
to  the  awful  defiles  of  the  Khyber  Pass  in 
Affghanistan,  and  southward  to  the  Bay  of 
Bengal.  On  the  24th  of  that  month,  the 
horizon  looked  so  threatening  that  the  ma- 
gistrate of  Futtehpore  advised  all  European 
ladies  and  native  Christian  females  to  leave 
the  station  for  Allahabad.  Gopee  Nauth, 
deeming  it  to  be  a duty  to  act  on  the  ad- 
vice, proceeded  wTith  his  wife  and  family, 
together  with  the  wives  and  children  of  the 
native  converts,  to  that  city,  intending  to 
return  to  his  post  as  soon  as  he  saw  them 
all  lodged  in  the  fortress.  On  reaching 
Allahabad,  however,  he  soon  found  that 
things  there  looked  just  as  ominous  as  at 


160  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

Futtehpore;  only  at  the  former  they  had 
the  great  fortress,  which  commands  the 
Ganges  and  the  Jumna,  to  fall  back  upon. 
But  even  the  fortress  looked  as  insecure  as 
the  city;  since  it  was  guarded  chiefly  by 
the  Sikhs,  whose  loyalty  was  at  that  time 
doubtful,  and  by  a company  of  the  6th  Na- 
tive Infantry,  the  very  regiment  which  so 
soon  mutinied  and  killed  their  officers, — 
there  being  in  it  only  sixty  or  seventy  in- 
valid Europeans  hurriedly  brought  from  the 
fort  of  Chunar.  Concluding,  also,  that,  as 
natives,  he  and  his  family  might  have  a 
better  chance  of  escaping,  in  the  event  of 
an  outbreak,  if  they  were  outside  the  fort, 
he  went  on  the  very  morning  of  the  day  on 
which  the  mutiny  broke  out,  and  took  pos- 
session of  one  of  the  mission-houses  on  the 
banks  of  the  Jumna,  at  a distance  of  about 
three  miles. 

From  this  house,  (Mr.  Owen’s,)  on  the 
evening  of  that  fatal  day,  they  were  startled 
by  the -glare  of  conflagration  in  the  can- 
tonments, and  the  confused,  though  some- 
what distant,  noise  of  infuriated  multitudes, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  161 

commingling  with  volleys  of  musketry. 
They  could  not  hesitate  as  to  the  cause. 
Cut  off  from  the  fort  and  the  entire  Euro- 
pean community,  after  five  or  six  hours 
of  dreadful  suspense,  they  resolved,  before 
the  dawn  of  next  day,  to  attempt  to  cross 
the  Jumna,  and  proceed  by  land  to  Mirza- 
pore,  distant  about  sixty  miles.  Having 
exchanged  their  dress  for  coarse  and  com- 
mon raiment,  taking  with  them  a few  rupees 
to  defray  the  necessary  expenses,  and  leav- 
ing all  the  rest  of  their  baggage  behind  as 
prey  to  the  mutineers  and  their  fellow-plun- 
derers, they  reached  the  opposite  bank  of 
the  river  about  daybreak,  and  set  off  on 
foot  for  Mirzapore.  The  fugitive  party  con- 
sisted of  Gopee  Nauth  and  his  wife,  two  boys, 
the  elder  of  them  only  seven  or  eight  years 
of  age,  the  younger  one  about  six,  and  an 
infant  at  the  breast,  who,  of  course,  had  to 
be  carried, — their  servants,  in  spite  of  every 
promise  of  ample  reward,  having  refused  to 
accompany  them.  After  walking  a few  miles, 
the  summer  sun  in  a cloudless  copper  sky 
soon  blazing  upon  them  with  furnace  heat, 


162  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

their  blistered  feet  refused  to  carry  them 
any  farther,  and  they  sank  down  fainting 
and  exhausted.  “Then,”  says  Gopee  Nauth, 
“when  in  an  awful  dilemma,  not  knowing 
what  to  do,  we  raised  our  hearts  to  Him 
who  is  always  ready  to  hear  and  grant  the 
petitions  of  his  believing  people.”  Nor  did 
they  trust  in  vain.  As  they  were  praying, 
an  empty  cart  came  up  that  was  returning 
that  way;  and  the  driver,  for  a reasonable 

sum,  agreed  at  once  to  take  them  on  a few 
miles. 

The  cartman,  having  reached  the  dis- 
tance bargained  for,  dropped  them  in  an 
open  field,  wholly  without  shelter  of  any 
kind,  exposed  to  the  fierceness  of  a meridian 

sun,  and  the  fiery  vehemence  of  the  hot 
winds,  which  drove  suffocating  clouds  of  dust 
before  them.  Nor  was  this  all:  besides  the 
hostility  of  the  elements,  they  had  suddenly 
to  encounter  the  far  more  dreadful  hostility 
of  relentless  men, — men  set  loose  from  the 
salutary  restraints  of  government  and  law. 
It  was  evident  that  tidings  of  the  mutiny 
and  massacre  at  Allahabad  had  spread  be- 


* MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  163 

fore  them.  All  controlling  authority  being 
evidently  considered  as  at  an  end,  they  no 
sooner  stopped  than,  to  their  utter  surprise, 
they  were  surrounded  by  the  neighboring 
villagers,  armed  with  latties,  (sticks  with 
lead  twisted  round  one  end,)  swords,  and 
muskets,  threatening  forthwith  to  rob  and 
kill  them.  Again  did  they  raise  up  their 
souls  in  fervent  supplication  to  their  gra- 
cious heavenly  Father;  and  again  did  he 
interpose  for  their  deliverance.  The  zemin- 
dar of  the  place,  a Hindoo,  suddenly  made 
his  appearance  just  in  time.  Gopee  Nauth 
at  once  confessed  that  he  and  his  family 
were  Christians,  and  that  their  trust  was  in 
the  God  of  the  Christians.  The  zemindar, 
more  intelligent  than  the  armed  rabble, — 
knowing  more  of  the  resources  of  the  Chris- 
tian British  Government,  and  fearing  after- 
retribution,— persuaded  them  to  let  their 
prey  escape  undamaged.  He  even  procured 
the  services  of  a cartman,  who,  for  a moderate 
hire,  agreed  to  take  the  party  to  Mirzapore. 
Thus  the  simple  honesty  of  Gopee  Nauth,  in 
confessing,  in  trying  circumstances,  that  he 


164  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

and  his  family  were  Christians,  seemed  to 
be  the  very  means  of  saving  their  lives. 

Their  progress  that  day  was  not  very 
great.  About  sunset  they  reached  a village 
distant  only  about  twelve  miles  from  Alla- 
habad. There  they  found  shelter  for  the 
night  from  a Brahmin,  who  professed  friend- 
ship but  in  reality  cherished  deadly  enmity. 
From  a conversation  which  they  happened 
providentially  to  overhear,  they  gathered 
that  the  Brahmin’s  purpose  was  to  murder 
them  in  cold  blood  while  sleeping,  and 
thus  secure  the  entire  booty  to  himself.  In 
this  diabolical  purpose  he  was  frustrated  by 
their  keeping  awake  all  night, — praying 
aloud,  and  singing  praises  to  God  their  Fa- 
ther in  heaven.  Early  in  the  morning  they 
wished  to  depart,  but  could  not,  as  the  cart- 
man  had  absconded  with  his  vehicle;  while 
the  villagers  assumed  a fearfully  threaten- 
ing attitude.  While  detained  there,  they 
were  doomed  to  witness  some  revolting  atro- 
cities, which  indicated  that  the  spirit  of  the 
murderous  mutineers  had  also  become  to  a 
great  extent  the  spirit  of  the  people  at 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  165 

large.  Here  is  a specimen.  A Hindoo  syce, 
(groom,  or  horse-keeper,)  returning  from 
Cawnpore  to  his  home  at  Mirzapore,  with 
his  wife  and  only  child,  about  a year  old, — • 
and  having  several  bundles,  containing,  pro- 
bably, the  earnings  of  years, — was  arrested 
by  the  villagers.  The  syce  himself  they 
seized  first,  and  soon  plundered  of  every 
thing, — even  the  very  clothes  on  his  body. 
But  when  they  began  to  strip  his  wife  of 
her  clothes,  she  very  naturally  made  re- 
sistance. Resistance,  however,  being  vain, 
she  pitifully  implored  them  to  spare  a 
part  of  her  garment,  sufficient  to-  cover  her 
nakedness.  But  this  only  exasperated  the 
heartless  villains,  who,  in  their  frantic  rage, 
snatched  the  child  from  the  mother’s  arms, 
and,  holding  it  by  the  legs,  dashed  its  little 
head  violently  on  a stone,  scattering  the 
brains  all  around ! 

After  such  a spectacle,  well  might  Gopee 
and  his  wife  fear  that  there  was  no  hope  for 
them.  Having  passed  another  day  and  sleep- 
less night,  amid  scenes  of  violence  and  un- 
ceasing alarm,  and  having  judged  that  death 


166  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


seemed  inevitable  anyhow,  they  resolved  to 
put  an  end  to  excruciating  suspense,  and 
bring  matters  to  a speedy  and  decisive  issue, 
by  openly  and  boldly  confronting  the  danger. 
Accordingly,  early  on  the  morning  of  the 
third  day,  they  started  on  their  perilous 
journey.  But  hardly  had  they  reached  the 
main  road,  when  they  were  beset  by  bands 
of  armed  ruffians,  shouting  defiance  and 
menace.  Interpreting  their  intentions,  Gopee 
Nauth  simply  and  plainly  told  them  that 
he  was  a Christian  padre,  (minister,)  that  his 
vocation  was  to  preach  the  gospel  of  salva- 
tion,— the  very  substance  of  which  was 
“ Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  peace  on  earth, 
and  good  will  to  men/' — that  the  property 
and  lives  of  himself  and  family  were  in  other 
hands,  that  they  might  do  with  them  as  they 
thought  proper,  while  they  would  submit  in 
humble  resignation  to  the  will  of  God. 

The  transparent  honesty  and  conciliatory 
tendency  of  such  words  seemed  to  operate 
with  some  assuaging  influence.  Still,  the 
property  they  must  have,  though  they  might 
spare  their  lives.  Gopee  Nauth  then  be- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  167 


sought  them  to  allow  him,  at  least,  to  retain 
the  truss  which  he  was  compelled  to  wear 
in  consequence  of  an  internal  rupture,  as 
also  his  English  Bible,  which,  being  in  an 
unknown  tongue,  could  be  of  no  use  to  them. 
But  no ! They  must  have  all, — clothes,  bun- 
dles, truss,  Bible,  and  every  thing.  After 
being  stripped  completely  bare,  without  offer- 
ing any  resistance,  the  villains  began  to 
quarrel  among  themselves  about  the  division 
of  the  spoil.  And,  while  from  quarrelling 
they  proceeded  to  mutual  blows,  Gopee 
Nauth,  wife,  and  children  contrived  to  run 
away,  and  so  effected  their  escape. 

Finding  that  the  road  to  Mirzapore  was 
blocked  up  and  rendered  quite  impassable 
by  hordes  of  ruthless  robbers,  they  resolved 
to  attempt  to  retrace  their  steps  to  Allaha- 
bad, though  the  attempt  had  all  the  appear- 
ance of  a forlorn  hope.  Into  the  details  of 
this  weary  retrograde  journey  I cannot  now 
enter.  Suffice  it  to  say  that,  after  having 
endured  much  suffering,  from  exposure  to 
the  sun  and  hot  winds,  as  well  as  from 
hunger  and  thirst  and  nakedness,  and  the 


168  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

ragings  of  the  heathen,  they  succeeded, 
through  the  aid  of  some  Hindoo  zemindars,  in 
reaching  the  Jumna.  When  crossing  the  river, 
they  saw  the  mission  bungalow  burned  down 
to  ashes,  the  beautiful  church  shattered  and 
dismantled,  with  endless  other  memorials,  in 
every  direction,  of  havoc  and  rapine. 

On  landing,  they  were  instantly  encom- 
passed with  Mussulmans,  who,  on  learning 
that  they  were  Christians,  began  to  clamor 
for  their  lives.  And  killed  there  and  then 
they  inevitably  would  have  been,  had  not 
the  Lord  put  it  into  the  heart  of  a Hindoo 
goldsmith  to  take  pity  on  them  and  receive 
them  into  his  own  house,  while  himself,  his 
son  and  brother  actually  stood  with  drawn 
swords  at  the  outer  gate  to  defend  them 
from  the  murderous  weapons  of  the  san- 
guinary followers  of  the  Arabian  prophet. 
There  they  heard  of  the  massacre  in  the 
cantonments,  with  the  general  plunder  and 
destruction  of  property,  with  the  further 
addition — which  happily  turned  out  to  be 
untrue — that  the  mutineers  had  seized  the 
fortress  and  murdered  all  its  inmates.  Such 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  169 

information  was  well  calculated  to  drive 
them  into  utter  despair. 

In  the  mean  while,  a Maulvi,  or  learned 
Mohammedan,  had,  in  the  name  of  the  King 
of  Delhi,  proclaimed  himself  acting  ruler  of 
Allahabad  and  neighborhood.  And,  when 
the  goldsmith  could  protect  them  no  longer 
from  the  thousands  that  craved  for  their 
lives,  they  entreated  the  infuriated  mob  not 
to  kill  them  there,  but  to  take  them  to  their 
own  acknowledged  head,  the  Maulvi,  that 
he  might  pass  on  them  what  sentence  he 
pleased.  So  eagerly  bent  were  they  on  their 
destruction,  that  it  was  with  extreme  diffi- 
culty that  this  request  was  complied  with. 
Even  on  their  way  to  the  Maulvi,  they 
were  again  and  again  on  the  eve  of  being 
butchered.  As  one  who  kills  a Kaffir  or 
unbeliever — and  all  Christians  are  such  in 
the  estimation  of  Mussulmans — is  declared 
to  be  rewarded  by  being  carried  to  the 
seventh  or  highest  heaven,  there  was  a 
burning  impatience  on  the  part  of  the  fren- 
zied multitude  to  earn  a share  of  this  tran- 


170  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


scendent  felicity  by  at  once  imbruing  their 
hands  in  Kaffir  blood. 

At  length,  however,  they  did  reach  the 
Maulvi,  who  had  taken  possession  of  a 
European  garden-house.  There  he  was 
seated,  like  a king  on  a throne,  surrounded 
by  men  with  drawn  swords.  Then  followed 
a notable  interview,  which  I shall  give  as 
nearly  as  possible  in  Gopee  Nauth’s  own 
words. 

Maulvi. — Who  are  you? 

Gopee  Nauth. — We  are  Christians. 

M. — What  place  do  you  come  from? 

G. — Futtehpore. 

M. — What  was  your  occupation? 

G. — Preaching  and  teaching  the  Chris- 
tian religion. 

M \ — Are  you  a padre  ? 

G. — Yes,  sir. 

M. — Was  it  you  who  used  to  go  about 
reading  and  distributing  books  in  streets 
and  villages  ? 

G. — Yes,  sir : it  was  I and  my  cate- 
chists. 

M. — How  many  Christians  have  you  made  ? 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  171 


G. — I did  not  make  any  Christians,  for 
no  human  being  can  change  the  heart  of 
another, — but  God,  through  my  instrument- 
ality, to  the  belief  and  profession  of  his 
true  religion,  some  thirty  or  forty. 

On  this,  the  Maulvi  lost  his  temper,  and 
exclaimed,  in  a great  rage,  “ Fy,  fy ! shame, 
shame ! this  is  downright  blasphemy. 
God  never  makes  Kaffirs,  (Christians  being 
such ;)  but  you,  Kaffirs,  pervert  the  people. 
God  always  makes  Mohammedans ; for  the 
religion  of  Mohammed,  which  we  follow,  is 
the  only  true  religion.” 

M. — How  many  Mohammedans  have  you 
perverted  to  your  religion  ? 

G. — I have  not  perverted  any  one;  but, 
by  the  grace  of  God,  about  a dozen  Moham- 
medans have  turned  from  darkness  unto  the 
glorious  light  of  the  gospel. 

Hearing  this,  the  Maulvi’s  face  became 
as  red  as  hot  iron,  and  he  cried  out,  in  great 
wrath,  “You  are  a rogue ! a villain!  You 
have  renounced  your  forefathers’  faith,  and 
become  a child  of  Satan,  and  have  been 
using  your  every  effort  to  bring  others  into 


172  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


the  same  road  of  destruction.  You  deserve 
no  ordinary  punishment.  Yours  must  be  a 
cruel  death.  My  sentence,  therefore,  is, 
that  your  nose,  ears,  and  hands  shall  be  cut 
off,  at  different  times,  so  as  to  prolong  your 
sufferings.  Your  wife  must  be  dealt  with 
in  the  same  manner,  and  your  children  shall 
be  taken  into  slavery.” 

On  this,  Gopee  Nauth’s  wife,  with  undaunted 
courage,  was  enabled  to  say  to  the  Maulvi, 
“Since  we  are  to  die,  the  only  favor  I ask 
for  is,  that  we  be  not  separated  in  our  death, 
and  that,  instead  of  torturing,  you  order  us 
to  be  killed  at  once.” 

There  was  something  in  this  remark 
which,  coming  from  a tender  and  delicate 
female,  seemed  to  touch  even  the  obdurate 
heart  of  the  proud  and  haughty  despot  who 
for  the  hour  was  lord  of  the  ascendant. 
So,  after  having  kept  silent  for  a while,  as 
if  profoundly  meditating,  he  broke  the 
silence,  by  exclaiming,  “Praised  be  God! 
you  appear  to  be  a respectable  man  : I pity 
you  and  your  family.  As  a friend,  there- 
fore, I advise  you  and  them  to  become  Mo- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  173 

hammedans.  By  doing  so,  you  will  not  only 
save  your  lives,  but  be  raised  to  a high 
rank.”  To  this  Gopee  Nauth’s  answer  was 
that  “they  would  prefer  death  to  any  induce- 
ment he  could  hold  out  to  them  to  change 
their  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the  only  true 
Saviour.”  Somewhat  astonished  at  the  calm 
and  firm  reply,  and  apparently  incredulous 
as  to  this  being  the  resolve  of  Gopee  Nauth’s 
wife,  he  made  a special  appeal  to  her. 
Through  Gods  grace  at  that  trying  moment, 
she  staggered  not  in  her  faith,  but,  with  as 
much  firmness  and  decision  as  her  husband, 
replied  that  she  “was  ready  to  sacrifice  her 
life  in  preference  to  her  trust  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  and  the  profession  of  his  name, 
and  that  no  inducement  which  he  could 
hold  out  would  make  her  change  her  mind.” 
Evidently  taken  aback  by  so  unexpected 
a reply,  the  Maulvi  next  asked  Gopee  Nauth 
if  he  had  ever  read  the  Koran.  The  an- 
swer was,  “Yes,  I have.”  “Ah,”  said  he, 
“but  you  could  not  have  read  it  with  a view 
to  be  profited  by  it : you  can  only  have  been 

15* 


174  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

picking  out  isolated  passages  in  order  to 
argue  with  the  Mohammedans.” 

After  a little  further  reflection, — being 
evidently  puzzled  what  to  do, — his  final 
. sentence  was  this : — “Well,  out  of  pity  I will 
allow  you  three  days  to  think  over  the  mat- 
ter  : during  these  days  you  may  have  proper 
help  in  studying  the  Koran.  At  the  expiry 
of  these,  I shall  send  for  you.  If  you  then 
believe  and  become  Mohammedans,  all  right 
and  good, — it  will  go  well  with  you.  But 
if  otherwise,  your  noses,  ears,  and  hands 
must  be  cut  off,  according  to  the  original 
sentence/’  On  which  GopeeNauth  remarked, 
“ It  is  all  in  vain.  There  is  no  occasion  to 
wait  so  long;  for,  while  God  is  pleased  to 
continue  his  grace  to  us,  we  will  not  re- 
nounce our  faith.  And  as  God’s  grace  never 
fails  those  who  trust  in  him,  it  were  better 
for  you  at  once  to  order  our  heads  to  be  cut 
off.”  To  this  the  Maulvi  made  no  reply, 
but  made  signs  to  his  attendants  to  take 
them  off  to  prison,  which  was  at  no  great 
distance. 

While  on  the  way  to  prison,  guarded  by 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


175 


fierce  Mussulmans  with  drawn  swords,  Go- 
pee  Nauth  says,  “I  raised  my  heart  in  praise 
and  adoration  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  for 
having  given  us  grace  to  stand  firm  in  the 
trying  hour  when  our  lives  were  disposed 
of,  and  to  overcome  all  the  temptations 
which  the  Maulvi  could  hold  forth.  Be- 
peating  aloud  the  11th  and  12th. verses  of 
the  5th  chapter  of  Matthew,  I thanked  my 
blessed  Lord  for  counting  us  worthy  to  suf- 
fer for  his  name’s  sake.” 

On  reaching  the  place  of  imprisonment, 
they  were  surprised  and  saddened  to  find 
already  there  several  other  native  Christians 
who  had  been  caught  on  the  preceding  day, — 
a British  officer,  covered  all  over  with  fes- 
tering wounds,  and  another  English  gentle- 
man, with  his  wife  and  five  children,  two  or 
three  of  the  latter  being  grown-up  daughters, 
all  of  whom  had  to  submit  to  insults  and  in- 
dignities from  their  unfeeling  keepers.  After 
mutual  converse,  GopeeNauth  proposed  that, 
as  they  were  doomed  to  die,  they  had  better 
unite  in  prayer,  and  cast  themselves  on  the 
guardian  care  of  Him  who  could  deliver 


176  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

them  from  the  mouth  of  the  lion,  or,  if  that 
was  not  his  will,  could  render  them  tri- 
umphant when  undergoing  the  most  cruel 
death. 

When  engaged  in  this  exercise,  the  grim 
jailer,  highly  offended,  rushed  forward,  and, 
violently  kicking  Gopee  Nauth  on  the  back, 
sternly  demanded  him  to  desist,  adding  that 
if  he  prayed  properly,  in  the  name  of  Mo- 
hammed, he  might  pray  as  long  as  he 
pleased.  On  which  Gopee’s  own  remark  is, 
“Our  lips  were  thereby  truly  closed,  but  our 
hearts  were  still  in  communion  with  God, 
who  regards  the  motions  and  desires  of  the 
heart  more  than  the  mere  utterance  of  the 
lips.” 

Perceiving  that  Gopee  Nauth’s  words 
cheered  his  fellow-captives,  and  that  his  at- 
tention served  somewhat  to  relieve  the  poor 
officer,  whose  wounds  had  become  putrifying 
sores,  and  who,  in  his  torment,  could  neither 
sit,  nor  stand,  nor  lie  down  on  the  bare  ground, 
the  wicked  jailer  resolved  to  separate  him 
from  his  family  and  all  the  rest.  To  this 
gratuitously  cruel  change  some  resistance 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  177 


was  made;  on  which  a body  of  rebels  fell 
upon  them  with  weapons,  dragging  Gopee 
Nauth  himself  outside,  and  fastening  his  feet 
in  the  stocks,  and  seizing  his  wife  by  the  hair 
of  her  head,  knocking  it  against  a brick, 
and  inflicting  a severe  wound  on  the  fore- 
head, the  impression  of  which  will  cling  to 
her  through  life. 

The  bodily  sufferings  and  mental  agonies 
of  all  now  became  unspeakably  aggravated. 
The  wonder  is  that  Gopee  Nauth  was  enabled 
to  survive  for  a day.  For  outside,  with  his 
feet  in  the  stocks,  he  was  exposed,  without 
any  shelter  at  all,  bareheaded,  to  the  blazing 
sun  and  hot  winds. 

If  ever  the  promise,  11  The  sun  shall  not 
smite  thee  by  day,”  was  literally  verified, 
surely  it  was  in  this  case.  For,  to  add  to 
the  wonder,  Gopee  Nauth  had  for  years  been 
afflicted  with  a cerebral  affection,  the  result 
of  overstrained  and  unceasing  mental  energy 
that  knew  no  repose.  And  previously,  the 
least  direct  exposure  to  the  sun,  or  over- 
exercise, was  wont  to  heighten  his  sore 
malady.  But  now,  as  he  himself  remarked, 


178  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

singular  to  say,  “ notwithstanding  so  much 
privation  and  fatigue,  so  much  exposure  to 
the  sun  and  hot  winds,  our  heavenly  Father 
did  not  permit  the  dangerous  complaint  to 
be  increased,  but  throughout  caused  it  to 
remain  much  as  it  was  before,  when  minis- 
tered to  by  all  the  needful  appliances  of  re- 
lief." 

Supplied  with  only  a handful  of  parched 
grain  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  a single 
hard  chupatti  (or  thin,  coarse  wheaten  cake) 
at  night,  and  a very  little  dirty  water,  they 
suffered  also  from  hunger  and  thirst.  Then, 
about  every  five  minutes,  the  Maulvi  s 
emissaries  assailed  them, — threatening  to 
take  away  their  lives  if  they  did  not  in- 
stantly become  Mohammedans.  An  illiterate 
Maulvi,  also,  used  to  pester  them  by  reading 
passages  of  the  Koran ; but,  when  questioned 
as  to  their  meaning,  he  confessed  he  did  not 
know,  as  it  was  written  in  Arabic : to  know 
the  meaning  was  not  necessary,  as  the  virtue 
lay  in  hearing  and  remembering  the  words 
of  the  sacred  book.  \ 

At  last  the  third,  the  fatal  day  that  was 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  179 

to  seal  their  doom,  arrived;  and  we  may 
suppose  with  what  intense  anxiety  they  were 
waiting  to  receive  the  order  to  appear  in 
the  Maulvi’s  presence  and  undergo  the 
dreadful  sentence.  But  the  day  passed  away 
as  usual;  the  Maulvi,  from  some  unknown 
cause  or  other,  did  not  send  for  them.  On  the 
sixth  day,  however,  of  their  confinement, 
the  Maulvi  himself  came  to  them,  and,  look- 
ing at  Gopee  Nauth,  asked,  with  a leer  of 
the  eye,  if  he  was  comfortable.  The  reply 
was,  “How  can  I be  comfortable,  thus  ex- 
posed, day  and  night,  with  my  feet  in  the 
stocks?  but  I take  it  patiently,  as  such  is 
the  will  of  my  heavenly  Father.’ ’ Again, 
by  threatenings  and  by  promises,  he  strove 
to  persuade  them  to  renounce  Christ  and 
embrace  the  faith  of  Mohammed, — evidently 
concluding  that  it  would  redound  more  to 
his  glory  and  that  of  his  religion  were  he 
to  succeed  in  making  converts  of  a Chris- 
tian minister  and  his  family,  than  merely  to 
put  them  to  death,  even  by  torture.  His 
patience,  however,  now  seemed  exhausted 
by  the  resolute  refusal  of  the  poor  sufferers, 


180  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


and  their  steadfast  perseverance  in  witness- 
ing a “good  confession”  of  the  name  of  Jesus. 
Accordingly,  disappointed  and  chagrined, 
he  went  away,  denouncing  instant  and  sum- 
mary vengeance. 

But  his  cruel  and  despotic  reign  was 
nearer  an  end  than  he  had  calculated  upon, 
and  the  deliverance  of  his  doomed  captives 
nearer  at  hand  than  they  had  ever  dared  to 
dream  of.  For  that  very  day , the  sixth  of 
their  confinement,  in  consequence  of  the 
arrival  of  the  gallant  and  now,  alas ! la- 
mented Neill,  with  his  Fusiliers,  a band  of 
European  and  Sikh  soldiers  issued  out  from 
the  fort  to  attack  the  rebels.  After  a severe 
conflict,  the  latter  were  totally  defeated;  and 
on  the  following  morning,  before  daybreak, 
the  enemy  retreated,  and  abandoned  Alla- 
habad with  so  much  precipitation  that  they 
left  their  prisoners  behind,  unslaughtered. 
Soon  were  Gopee  Nauth,  his  family,  and  their 
European  companions,  delivered,  escaping 
like  birds  out  of  the  cage  of  the  fowler.  And 
soon  were  they  secure  within  the  fort,  and 
cherished  in  the  very  lap  of  Christian  kind- 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  181 

ness.  Then  did  they  joyously  unite  with  their 
missionary  brethren,  and  others,  in  praising 
and  magnifying  the  name  of  their  faithful 
covenant-keeping  God,  who  had  so  won- 
drously  sustained  them  amid  such  compli- 
cated trials  and  sufferings,  strengthened 
them  to  make  a full  and  open  confession  of 
his  blessed  name  and  religion  before  the 
enemy,  and  finally  so  unexpectedly  delivered 
them  from  the  very  jaws  of  Satan. 

There  he  soon  heard  of  the  horrible  death 
to  which  his  old  benefactor,  Mr.  Tucker, 
judge  of  Futtehpore,  was  subjected  by  his 
own  Mohammedan  deputy, — a man  whom 
he  himself  had  raised  from  obscurity  and 
placed  in  a situation  at  once  lucrative  and 
honorable,  and  who  now  repaid  the  gene- 
rous kindness  by  treacherously  betraying 
his  master,  and  reading  passages  of  the 
Koran  over  him,  as  the  warrant  for  putting 
him  to  a cruel  death.  There,  too,  he  heard 
of  the  total  destruction  of  the  mission-pro- 
perty,— church  and  schools,  with  mission- 
house  and  furniture,  and  library  of  valuable 
works,  all  completely  destroyed;  and,  as 
16 


182  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


the  time  when  it  might  be  safe  to  return  to 
the  station  seemed  far  distant,  he  availed 
himself  of  the  offer  of  a free  passage,  in  one 
of  the  Government  steamers,  to  Calcutta. 
Here  he  has  been  for  the  last  three  months ; 
and  from  his  own  lips  I have  again  and 
again  heard  the  affecting  narrative  of  which 
I have  now  endeavoured,  by  the  omission 
of  many  minute  details,  to  furnish  a com- 
pendious sketch. 

And  surely  it  is  not  possible  for  any  one 
to  peruse  it  without  sensibly  feeling  that  it 
furnishes  a signal  illustration  of  the  tri- 
umphs of  divine  grace.  Naturally  and  con- 
stitutionally he  is  just  as  weak,  timid,  and 
cowardly  as  any  other  native  of  Bengal.  But 
when  the  truth  of  God  is  concerned,  his  faith 
renders  him  bold  and  fearless  as  a lion.  His  * 
entire  demeanor  throughout,  and  especially 
the  calmness  and  resolute  fortitude  mani- 
fested by  this  native  Hindoo  Protestant 
minister  when  under  trial  and  condemna- 
tion by  an  arch-priest  and  arch-tyrant  of 
antichristian  Mohammedanism,  may  well 
bear  comparison  with  any  of  the  more  no- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  183 


table  trials  of  European  Protestant  minis- 
ters by  the  arch-priests  and  arch-tyrants  of 
antichristian  Popery.  And  is  not  this  mat- 
ter for  adoring  thankfulness  ? Away,  then, 
with  the  foul  calumny  of  godless  politicians 
and  mere  men  of  the  world,  that  there  never 
has  been  a genuine  native  convert  in  India, 
or  that  all  native  converts  are  alike  hypo- 
critical and  insincere ! x\part  from  the  thou- 
sands in  Tinnevelly,  and  the  hundreds  or 
the  scores  elsewhere,  the  case  of  Gopee  Nauth 
Nundy,  and  of  the  actual  martyrdoms  at 
Delhi,  Bareilly,  and  Futteghur,  ought  for- 
ever to  silence  the  wicked  slander.  And, 
then,  think  of  Gopee  Nauth’s  wife!  She, 
too,  was  as  brave  of  heart  as  her  husband 
for  the  testimony  of  Jesus.  She,  too,  was 
ready  to  be  taken  from  her  husband  and 
children,  and  lay  down  her  life,  rather  than 
repudiate  the  faith  of  Jesus,  her  blessed 
Lord  and  Saviour.  There  is  hope,  then, 
for  India's  daughters.  Some  of  them  have 
already  paid  the  penalty  of  their  lives  for 
bearing  the  name  of  Christ ; and  others  have 


184:  MABTYBS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

nobly  proved  that  they  were  ready  to  die 
rather  than  renounce  that  blessed  name. 

Let  us;  then,  in  all  this  see  wherein  the 
true  hope  for  India  lies.  See  what  Chris- 
tianity did  for  Gopee  Nauth  and  his  family 
and  fellow-sufferers ! See  what  the  want  of 
Christianity  has  done  for  the  high-caste  Se- 
poys! When  will  our  nominally  Christian 
statesmen  learn  lessons  of  practical  wisdom 
from  these  conspicuous  dealings  of  Jeho- 
vah's providence  ? But  I must  pause.  Gopee 
Nauth,  as  I stated,  is  now  here.  And,  as  he 
cannot  be  idle,  wherever  he  is,  he  is  busily 
engaged  in  preaching  in  the  native  bungalow 
chapels,  in  looking  after  native  converts, 
and  in  rendering  effectual  assistance  daily 
in  our  institution.  The  Lord  spare  and  bless 
him  in  all  his  labors ! 

Yours  affectionately, 

Alexandeb  Duff. 

To  this  narrative,  which  reached  Gopee 
Nauth  Nundy  in  the  “ Missionary  Gleaner/’ 
he  has  added  the  following  details : — 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  185 

“I  cannot  conclude  without  inserting  a 
few  words  about  the  manifestation  of  Gods 
goodness  towards  us.  The  saving  of  our 
lives  was  a miracle.  Other  dear  Christians, 
both  European  and  native,  were  exposed  to 
similar  dangers;  but  most  of  them  were 
slaughtered.  No  less  than  ten  or  twelve 
times  we  were  brought  to  the  very  brink  of 
the  grave.  Every  thing  appeared  as  against 
us.  The  sun  beat  upon  us  with  all  its  power- 
ful rays;  the  hot  wind — of  which  you  can- 
not form  any  conception,  as  you  were  never 
in  the  country — pierced  like  deadly  arrows; 
the  sword  hung,  and  was  ready  to  fall  upon 
us,  to  divide  our  bodies  from  our  heads; 
starvation  and  nakedness  brought  our  mor- 
tal frames  into  a state  of  wretchedness : yet 
none  had  power  to  injure  us,  because  such 
was  not  the  will  of  our  heavenly  Father. 
Again,  the  trials  were  so  great  and  incessant 
that  nothing  but  the  grace  of  God  alone 
kept  us  faithful.  The  Maulvi,  when  foiled 
by  arguments  to  bring  us  to  renounce  the 
Christian  faith,  brought  forward  all  the 
threats  which  a wicked  heart  could  invent. 

16* 


186  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

He  threatened  to  take  off  all  the  limbs  of 
our  bodies,  and  thus  torture  us  to  death; 
but  when  he  saw  that  these  even  had  no 
effect  to  change  our  creed,  he  then  promised 
to  give  us  riches,  land  free  of  rent,  and  other 
worldly  grandeurs;  but,  thanks  be  to  God, 
he  soon  received  a negative  answer.  His  next 
attack  was  on  my  poor  wife,  who,  though 
naturally  a timid  woman,  yet  at  that 
moment  she  was  astonishingly  bold  in  de- 
claring her  faith.  Well  may  I insert  the 
sweet  words  of  our  blessed  Lord,  'And  ye 
shall  be  brought  before  governors  and  kings 
for  my  sake,  for  a testimony  against  them 
and  the  Gentiles.  But  when  they  deliver 
you  up,  take  no  thought  how  or  what  ye 
shall  speak ; for  it  shall  be  given  you  in  that 
same  hour  what  ye  shall  speak : for  it  is  not 
ye  that  speak,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  Father 
which  speaketh  in  you/  Surrounded  as  she 
was  by  no  less  than  a hundred  infuriated 
and  savage-looking  men  with  drawn  swords, 
ready  to  inflict  torture,  yet  she  defended  her 
faith  most  gloriously.  When  the  Maulvi 
appealed  to  her,  and  said  what  he  would  do, 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  187 

— thinking,  no  doubt,  that  her  natural  weak- 
ness would  yield  to  his  proposals,  but  not 
knowing  that  a greater  Power  than  his  was 
directing  and  supporting  her, — she  humbly, 
and  yet  with  a loud  voice,  declared  that  she 
was  ready  to  undergo  any  punishment  he 
would  inflict,  but  would  not  deny  her  Master 
and  Saviour.  While  the  man  was  arguing 
with  me,  she  felt  somewhat  assured  that  we 
should  be  called  to  seal  our  faith  with  our 
blood.  She  began  to  teach  the  little  boys 
in  presence  and  in  hearing  of  all;  and  thus 
she  said: — ‘ You,  my  sweet  children,  will  be 
taken  and  kept  as  slaves  when  we  shall  be 
killed;  but  do  not  forget  to  say  your  prayers 
every  day;  and  when  the  English  power  is 
re-established,  fly  to  them  for  refuge,  and 
relate  the  circumstance  of  our  end/  And, 
while  instructing,  she  was  kissing  them  all 
the  time.  This  pitiful  scene  no  doubt 
touched  their  hard  and  stony  hearts.  The 
Maulvi  ordered  us  to  be  taken  to  the 
prison  and  kept  for  a future  occasion. 
Thus  came  we  out  through  our  fiery 


188 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


trials,  praising  and  glorifying  Jesus  for 
giving  us  grace  and  strength  to  confess  him 
before  the  world.” 

Gopee  Nauth  Nundy,  in  the  same  communi- 
cation, thus  speaks  of  the  Futtehpore  native 
Christians : — “ All  of  them, with  their  families, 
remained  in  the  mission-premises  to  the  last 
moment.  When  the  mutineers  attacked  and 
burned  all  the  houses,  they  then  fled  in  dif- 
ferent directions.  Some  of  them,  after 
crouching  in  jungles  for  more  than  a month, 
came  to  Allahabad  for  shelter;  the*  others, 
no  one  knows  whether  they  were  killed  by 
the  mutineers  or  fell  victims  to  the  climate. 
One  family,  a man  and  his  wife,  who  were 
both  baptized  and  admitted  into  the  Chris- 
tian church,  were  caught  by  the  mutineers. 
One  of  the  man's  hands  was  cut  off,  and  the 
woman,  after  being  savagely  treated,  was 
shorn  of  her  hair.  The  English  army, 
arriving  in  time,  saved  their  lives.  They 
are  now  at  Allahabad.” 

The  “ British  officer”  mentioned  in  this 
narrative  has  been  made  the  subject  of  a 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  189 

special  memoir,*  of  which  we  give  a brief 
epitome.  It  should  be  observed,  in  jus- 
tice to  Gopee  Nauth  Nundy,  that  his  faith 
was  not  giving  way  when  the  memorable 
words  of  the  young  Englishman  were  ad- 
dressed to  him.  The  story  has  been  re- 
peated in  a manner  calculated  to  lead  to 
an  impression  that  the  Christian  courage  of 
Nundy  was  on  the  point  of  failure,  when  it 
was  restored  by  the  exhortations  of  his 
youthful  friend. 

.Arthur  Marcus  Hill  Cheek,  or,  as  his 
friends  usually  called  him,  “Marcus,”  was 
born  at  Evesham,.  July  31,  1840.  He  grew 
rapidly  up  to  the  stature  of  man,  and  at  fifteen 
stood  within  an  inch  of  six  feet.  Evincing 
a strong  partiality  for  the  military  profes- 
sion, an  appointment  as  ensign  was  secured 
for  him  in  the  Indian  army ; and  in  March 
of  last  year,  when  not  yet  seventeen,  he  left 
England  to  join  his  regiment,  the  Sixth  Na- 
tive Infantry,  then  stationed  at  Allahabad. 

* The  Martyr  of  Allahabad.  Memorials  of  Ensign 
Cheek,  of  the  Sixth  Native  Bengal  Infantry.  By  the 
Rev.  Robert  Meek,  M.A. 


190  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

Prior  to  his  departure,  he  had  avowed 
himself,  a member  of  the  Christian  church, 
and  shown  by  his  conscientious  behavior 
that  serious  thoughts  were  habitual  with 
him.  The  mutiny  was  already  in  progress 
when  he  reached  his  destination,  and  in  a 
fortnight  from  the  time  of  his  arrival  he  was 
in  the  midst  of  it.  The  Jumna  flows  into 
the  Ganges  at  Allahabad;  and  the  junction 
constitutes  the  holiest  of  all  bathing-places 
to  the  pilgrims  of  Hindostan.  Marcus  had 
walked  by  the  broad  streams  in  their  con- 
fluence, and  had  written  briefly  home,  telling 
of  the  noble  city  that  stretched  along  their 
banks,  and  expressing  his  gratification  at 
the  new  circumstances  in  which  he  found 
himself.  These  bright  prospects  were  soon 
darkened.  There  came  rumors  of  insur- 
gents advancing  from  the  west,  and  the 
women  and  children  were  sent  into  the  fort 
for  safety.  But  the  native  regiment  to  which 
Ensign  Cheek  was  attached  had  recently 
volunteered  with  enthusiasm  to  march 
against  the  Delhi  rebels,  and  had  been  pub- 
licly thanked  for  their  loyal  spirit:  so  that, 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  191 

trusting  to  stalwart  Sepoys  rather  than  to 
stone  walls,  the  majority  of  the  civilians 
preferred  to  remain  in  their  usual  quarters. 
The  fort  was  terribly  crowded,  and  very 
hot ; and  when  the  Governor-General's 
praise  and  thanks  to  the  regiment  were 
read  out  and  received  with  cheers,  most 
thought  that  the  difficulty  would  pass 
over,  and  that  they  might  safely  remain 
without  the  walls  of  the  fort.  The  Rev.  J. 
Owen  would  have  left  the  fort  to  re-occupy 
his  house  into  which  Gopee  Nauth  went;  but 
he  had  got  his  chest  of  drawers,  with  his 
clothes,  in  the  fort,  and  the  inconvenience 
of  moving  them  induced  him  to  sleep  that 
fatal  night  in  the  fort,  instead  of  going  back 
to  his  house.  On  such  a slight  circumstance 
did  the  preservation  of  his  life  hang ! Nearly 
all  the  civilians  were  in  the  fort.  The  officers, 
of  course,  were  obliged  to  stay  with  their 
men. 

On  the  evening  of  the  6th  of  June,  the 
officers  of  “ the  Sixth"  sat  down  to  the 
table  unsuspectingly.  Suddenly  the  faith- 
less soldiery  sounded  the  alarm-bugle,  sur- 


192  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

rounded  them,  and  shot  them  down  right 
and  left.  Of  seventeen,  only  three  escaped, 
— two  by  swimming  the  Ganges ; nine  young 
ensigns  were  bayoneted  in  the  mess-room ; 
and,  in  all,  fifty  Europeans  fell  that  night. 
The  treasury  was  plundered,  the  jail  opened, 
the  station  fired,  and  atrocities  committed 
too  terrible  for  words.  A Maulvi  hoisted 
the  green  flag  of  the  Prophet  over  the  town, 
and  declared  himself  viceroy  of  the  King 
of  Delhi.  Under  the  scorching  sun  by  day, 
and  through  the  sleepless  night,  the  belea- 
guered garrison  of  fugitives  manned  the 
ramparts  of  the  fort,  whence  hour  by  hour 
their  guns  belched  forth  showers  of  flame. 
The  gallant  Neill, — who  rests  now  in  a 
soldier’s  grave  at  Lucknow, — pursuing  with 
his  troops  his  mission  of  relief  up  the  val- 
ley from  Benares,  arrived  at  length,  too 
late  to  avert  disaster,  but  not  too  late  to 
punish  the  murderers.  The  mutineers  were 
speedily  routed,  and  order  and  security 
again  restored. 

At  the  outbreak  of  this  sanguinary  strug- 
gle, Ensign  Cheek  happily  escaped  instant 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  193 


death.  He  had  retired  early  to  his  own 
private  lodgings,  and  was  therefore  absent 
when  the  attack  was  made  on  his  brother 
officers.  Coming  out  into  the  street  on 
hearing  the  tumult,  he  was  struck  down 
with  a sword,  and  left,  it  is  supposed,  for 
dead.  He  contrived,  however,  to  crawl 
away  unnoticed  and  to  hide  himself  in  a 
ravine  by  the  Ganges.  Here  he  found 
a stream,  the  waters  of  which  sustained 
his  life  for  four  days;  and,  for  protection 
from  wild  beasts,  he  managed,  although 
badly  wounded,  to  raise  himself  into  a tree 
at  night. 

On  the  fifth  day  of  his  concealment, 
Marcus  was  discovered,  and  dragged  before 
the  insurgent  chief  at  the  Khoosroo’s  garden, 
where  he  had  established  himself.  In  several 
of  the  published  accounts  of  what  then  oc- 
curred there  are  slight  discrepancies,  and 
it  is  certain  that  an  air  of  romance  has  been 
thrown  around  some  of  the  facts  which  does 
not  properly  belong  to  them.  We  confine 
ourselves  to  authenticated  documents,  and 
from  them  construct  a simple  narrative. 

17 


194  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

There  are  those  living  who,  in  witnessing 
a good  confession,  must  share  our  sympathy 
with  Marcus  Cheek.  Death  may  set  the 
seal  to  faith,  may  enrol  in  the  “ noble  army” 
above,  and  confer  the  palm  of  eternal  victory; 
but  it  does  not  constitute  the  martyr.  It  is 
the  animating  spirit  that  testifies  in  cou- 
rageous words  or  patient  endurance  to  the 
truth  believed — “the  spirit  of  life  because 
of  righteousness” — that  in  trusting  the  issues 
to  God,  whether  the  end  come  now  or  is 
delayed  a while,  is  honored  of  him  and  secure 
of  reward.  Prominent  in  the  group  of 
Christians  who  suffered  with  the  young  sol- 
dier at  Allahabad  was  Gogee  Nauth  Nundy, 
who  met  with  young  Cheek  in  the  dungeon 
to  which  they  were  both  committed. 

In  this  dungeon  were  several  other  na- 
tive Christians,  and  an  English  gentleman, 
with  his  wife  and  daughters.  The  young 
ensign  was  covered  with  festered  wounds. 
The  poor  lads  sufferings  were  severe  in  the 
extreme:  he  could  neither  sit  up  nor  lie 
down,  as  the  others,  on  the  bare  ground.  Go- 
pee  Nauth,  touched  with  compassion,  begged 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  195 

of  the  jailer  for  him  a coarse  bedstead,  and 
gave  him  water  and  such  food  as  he  could 
prepare,  to  revive  him.  And  then,  as  the 
faint  eye  glistened  with  momentary  life  and 
the  feeble  tongue  slowly  articulated,  he  sat 
and  listened  to  him  as  he  told  the  story  of 
his  sufferings,  or  talked  of  his  mother  and 
distant  friends.  But  this  kindness  of  Gopee- 
Nauth  roused  the  ire  of  the  jailer,  who  in- 
sisted on  removing  him  into  another  place, 
and,  on  this  being  resisted,  called  in  soldiers, 
who  thrust  him  out,  fastened  his  feet  in  the 
stocks,  and  left  him  exposed,  bare-headed, 
to  the  blazing  sun  and  heated  winds.  Sup- 
plied with  only  a handful  of  parched  grain 
in  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  a single  hard, 
coarse  wheaten  cake  at  night,  and  a very 
little  dirty  water,  this  small  band  of  Chris- 
tian prisoners  endured  much  from  hunger 
and  thirst.  Every  few  minutes,  too,  they 
were  exposed  to  the  threats  of  the  Maulvi’s 
emissaries,  who  swore  to  take  their  lives  if 
they  did  not  become  Mohammedans.  So 
the  long  days  passed, — not  all  wearily  and 
painfully,  for  “the  salvation  of  the  righteous 


196  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

is  of  the  Lord : he  is  their  strength  in  the 
time  of  trouble.” 

The  third  day — Gopee  Nauth’s  day  of  doom 
— came  and  went  like  the  others.  On  the 
sixth  day;  however,  the  Maulvi  himself 
appeared.  He  threatened,  he  exhorted,  but 
alike  in  vain;  and,  his  patience  failing  him, 
he  departed,  disappointed  and  chagrined, 
denouncing  instant  and  summary  vengeance. 
That  very  day  he  had  himself  to  flee  the 
avenger.  Throughout  these  trying  scenes, 
despite  his  physical  helplessness  and  suffer- 
ing, Marcus  Cheek  faltered  not  in  his  trust. 
Asked  by  his  tormentors  to  become  a Mus- 
sulman, and  threatened,  like  the  rest,  with 
death  if  he  refused,  he  answered,  “Any 
thing  but  resign  my  faith  and  hope  in  my 
Redeemer.”  Overhearing  the  cruel  words 
addressed  to  Gopee  Nauth,  he  called  to  him, 
“ Padre  Sahib  ! hold  on  to  your  faith : don't 
give  it  up."  To  Mrs.  Coleman,  their  lady 
companion,  he  spoke  in  the  same  confident 
tone.  Almost  in  his  last  moments  of  sensi- 
bility he  called  her  to  his  side  and  bade 
her  “ Remember  to  do  every  thing  but  that; 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  197 


be  true  to  your  faith  and  your  hope;"  and 
then  she  and  he  were  parted ; and  we  know 
no  more. 

Thus  for  nearly  a week  Ensign  Cheek 
was  exposed  to  the  brutal  caprice  of  his 
captors.  Nothing  could  be  learned  of  him  for 
several  days  by  those  in  the  fort.  On  the 
12th  of  June  they  heard  that  he  was  lying, 
badly  wounded,  with  others,  at  the  Khoos- 
roo’s ; but  they  were  unable  to  attempt  a 
rescue.  On  the  17th,  however,  reinforce- 
ments having  arrived,  under  the  gallant 
Neill,  the  mutineers  were  attacked  and  dis- 
persed on  every  hand.  So  sudden  was  their 
flight  that  they  left  their  prisoners  un- 
touched. Some  friendly  people  carried 
Marcus  Cheek  to  the  American  mission- 
house,  on  the  banks  of  the  Jumna,  whence 
Gopee  Nauth  had  fled;  and  he  was  thence 
conveyed  in  a steamer  to  the  fort.  He  was 
then  in  a sad  state, — his  forehead  gashed 
with  a sabre-stroke,  and  his  body  covered 
with  bruises  and  sores.  At  intervals  he 
appeared  slightly  sensible,  and  then  again 
his  spirit  lapsed  into  slumber  under  the 
17* 


198  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

shadow  of  death.  That  same  evening  he 
died.  His  last  uttered  wish,  in  a moment  of 
seeming  consciousness,  was,  to  write  to  his 
mother.  So  gentle  was  he,  yet  so  strong. 
They  buried  him  in  the  covered  way,  by 
the  river-side.  There  he  has  won  his  rest, 
— life's  first  great  duty,  and  its  last, — done 
nobly. 

In  Marcus  Cheek  the  fortitude  of  the 
young  soldier  was  only  equalled  by  the  faith 
of  the  young  Christian.  To  die  thus  is  to 
enter  heaven  crowned,  and  for  a brief  agony 
to  be  compensated  with  immortal  felicity. 
His  complete  triumph  in  so  sudden  a trial 
shows  how  boundless  are  the  resources  of 
power  and  consolation  secretly  treasured  in 
the  hearts  of  those  who  have  made  God 
their  refuge.  They  can  say,  “ What  shall 
separate  us  from  the  love  of  Christ?"  for 
they  remember  the  words,  “I  will  never 
leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee." 

The  horrible  treatment  of  another  of  the 
native  converts  is  described  by  the  Eev. 
James  Kennedy,  of  the  London  Missionary 
Society,  who  visited  Allahabad  after  the 


MABTYKS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  199 

mutiny.  He  first  speaks  of  the  present 
aspect  of  the  mission  : — 

“ Though  we  had  had  disturbances  at  Be- 
nares, and  our  full  share  of  anxiety,  it  was 
on  reaching  Allahabad  that  I saw  for  the 
first  time,  on  a large  scale,  the  desolating 
effects  of  the  mutiny.  I had  been  frequently 
in  that  place,  and  knew  it  well.  It  was  one  of 
the  finest  stations  in  Northern  India.  It  was 
for  nine  days  in  the  hands  of  the  mutineers 
and  rebels,  who  were  left  unchecked  to  pursue 
their  own  course.  If  they  had  been  demons 
let  loose  from  the  pit,  they  could  not  have 
pursued  with  more  fury  the  work  of  deso- 
lation. Most  of  the  houses,  having  roofs 
of  combustible  material,  were  easily  burned 
down;  but  there  were  several  flat-roofed 
houses,  with  thick  beams  and  stones  laid 
over  them,  which  were  not  so  easily  de- 
stroyed. In  some  cases,  resolute  and  too 
successful  efforts  were  made  to  destroy  even 
these ; but  the  toil  was  found  too  great,  and  a 
very  few  houses  escaped  with  the  destruction 
of  the  furniture  and  fittings  of  every  de- 
scription. Among  these  were  the  Station 


200  MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

Church  and  the  principal  chapel  of  the 
American  Mission.  It  was  quite  melancholy 
to  walk  over  the  place,  and  see  house  after 
house  in  ruin,  with  nothing  to  be  seen  but 
pieces  of  charred  wood  and  tottering  walls, 
and,  then  to  remember  how  many  who 
occupied  those  houses  had  been  ruthlessly 
slain  ! 

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ 

11  The  native  Christians  live  at  two  dif- 
ferent parts  of  Allahabad,  separated  about 
three  miles  from  each  other,  with  a view 
to  the  convenience  of  th^ir  respective  em- 
ployments. I got  a tent  erected  at  one  of 
these  places,  and  I visited  the  other  place 
as  frequently  as  possible.  I received  a cor- 
dial welcome  from  the  native  Christians.  I 
had  much  and  most  pleasing  intercourse 
with  them,  and  had  most  interesting  ac- 
counts of  their  sufferings  and  perils.  Some 
of  their  children  had  died  from  exposure, 
and  some  of  the  orphan-girls  had  been  lost. 
No  one  knew  what  had  become  of  them. 
Considering  the  circumstances  in  which  they 
had  been  placed,  the  wonder  was  that  the 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  201 

native  Christian  community  had  not  been 
utterly  destroyed. 

“ On  Sabbath  I preached  at  the  two  places 
where  the  native  Christians  are  located.  I 
have  seldom  had  more  attentive  audiences. 
Their  principal  place  of  worship  was  on  that 
day  reopened  for  public  worship.  "Win- 
dows, doors,  sittings,  every  thing  breakable, 
had  been  destroyed  at  the  time  of  the 
mutiny.  When  the  native  Christians  re- 
turned, they  thought  it  preferable  to  meet 
for  a time  in  one  of  their  own  houses  for 
worship.  When  I was  there,  it  was  resolved 
to  recommence  the  services  in  this  chapel. 
No  window  or  door  had  been  restored,  no 
sittings  had  been  put  in ; but  the  place  was 
well  cleaned,  matting  was  spread  on  the 
floor,  and  the  people  sat  on  it.  I need  not 
say  I preached  in  this  sanctuary  with  very 
peculiar  feelings.  The  people  evidently  felt 
much,  as  the  reoccupancy  of  their  place  of 
worship,  looking  now  so  differently  from 
what  it  had  done,  vividly  reminded  them 
of  the  scenes  through  which  they  had 


202  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

passed  since  they  last  assembled  in  it  in 
May,  1857. 

“One  man  sat  before  me,  listening  most 
devoutly  to  God’s  word, — a native  Christian 
from  Futtehpore,  in  whose  narrative  I had 
been  deeply  interested,  and  from  whom  I 
could  scarcely  withdraw  my  eye  as  I spoke. 
He  had  suffered  much  for  the  name  of 
Christ.  He  had  fled,  with  others,  when  the 
mutineers  got  the  upper  hand.  He  fell  in 
with  some  Sepoys,  who  had  seen  him  at 
Futtehpore,  and  who  recognised  him  as  a 
Christian.  They  called  on  him  to  deny 
Christ,  and  made  large  promises;  but  he 
said  he  would  rather  die  than  deny  his 
Lord  and  Saviour.  They,  bn  hearing  this, 
hacked  him  in  the  most  cruel  manner 
with  their  swords,  and  left  him  as  dead. 
He  lay  insensible  for  several  hours,  and 
then,  coming  to  himself,  he  crawled  to  a 
small  village  in  the  neighborhood,  where 
there  were  low-caste  Hindoos,  who  pitied 
him  and  treated  him  with  the  utmost  kind- 
ness. His  hand  had  been  so  cut  a little 
above  the  wrist  that  it  required  only  a 


MAKTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  203 

slight  pull  to  take  it  off.  By  the  advice  of 
the  poor  people  among  whom  he  had  gone, 
the  stump  was  put  into  oil,  which  checked 
the  violent  hemorrhage.  He  was  concealed, 
tended,  and  fed  for  some  weeks,  till  he  was 
able  to  make  his  way  to  Allahabad.  All 
about  his  head,  neck,  and  arms  there  were 
the  marks  of  the  fearful  gashes,  the  wounds 
his  cruel  enemies  had  inflicted.  Owing  to 
the  want  for  so  long  a time  of  proper  medi- 
cal treatment,  the  stump  had  not  entirely 
healed,  and  the  health  of  the  poor  man  was 
so  affected  that  I do  not  think  it  likely  he 
has  many  days  before  him  on  earth.  He 
seemed  to  me  a very  simple,  earnest  Chris- 
tian. A few  years  ago  he  was  a bigoted 
Hindoo.  It  has  been  common  to  say  that 
persecution  would  scatter  Hindustanee  Chris- 
tians like  chaff;  but,  thanks  to  the  grace  of 
God,  this  is  not  the  only  case  presented  last 
year  when  Hindustanee  Christians  were 
found  ready  not  only  to  suffer,  but  to  die, 
for  the  sake  of  the  Lord  Jesus.” 


204  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Agra  — The  Description  by  the  Converted  Brahmin, 
Dwarkanath  Lahoree — Another — The  Profession  of 
Christ  during  the  Mutiny  by  a Brahmin  and  Mo- 
hammedan Woman  — Thakur  Das  — The  Ladies  at 
Lucknow,  Miss  Orr  and  Miss  Jackson — Sealcote  and 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Hunter — Death  of  the  Rev.  E.  H. 
Cockey. 

Who  has  not  heard  of  Agra  and  the  fear- 
ful scenes  which  have  given  to  it  a terrible 
pre-eminence  in  the  history  of  the  Indian  Re- 
bellion ? There  it  pleased  God  in  his  provi- 
dence to  let  loose  the  storm  of  heathen  fury 
with  unrestrained  violence  on  the  innocent 
heads  of  his  own  people.  The  story  is  thus 
told  by  Dwarkanath  Lahoree,  a converted 
Brahmin,  and  a man  of  much  intelligence, 
in  a letter  to  his  pastor,  written  in  English : — 
“Since  the  outbreak  of  the  11th  of  May, 
at  Meeroot,  to  this  day,  the  sufferings  and 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  205 

trials  of  many  who  bear  the  blessed  name 
of  our  Lord;  whether  Europeans,  East  In- 
dians, or  natives, — whether  men,  women,  or 
children, — have  been  such  as  passeth  all 
description,  and  would  melt  the  heart  of  a 
stoic,  and  draw  tears  from  stones.  It  would 
require  more  space  and  time  than  I can  at 
present  spare,  a better  command  over  the 
language  in  which  I have  to  write,  and  per- 
haps a harder  heart,  were  I to  dwell  upon 
particulars,  and  to  recount  in  detail  the 
horrid  scenes  which  have  been  passing  here. 

. . . Oh,  how  many  precious  lives  of  Chris- 
tians have  fallen  victims  to  the  fury  of  blood- 
thirsty villains ! Neither  heroes  nor  poli- 
ticians, the  philanthropic  missionaries  nor 
civilians,  pious  and  delicate  ladies  nor  lovely 
little  ones, — nay,  not  even  the  poor  native 
Christians, — have  been  spared.  In  short, 
every  person  known  or  supposed  to  be  a 
Christian  that  had  the  misfortune  to  fall 
into  the  hands  of  these  wicked  sons  of  Be- 
lial has  been  cruelly  tortured  and  butchered. 
Dearly  beloved  brother  Mackay,  poor  Wala- 
yat  Aly,  the  missionaries  at  Futteghur  and 
18 


206  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

their  families,  are  believed  to  have  earned 
the  crown  of  martyrdom.  . . . Oh,  your 
heart  would  no  doubt  break  were  you  to  ob- 
serve the  present  wretched  condition  of  the 
military  and  civil  lines  of  even  this  station. 
Instead  of  the  neat  and  elegant  bungalows, 
surrounded  here  and  there  with  beautiful 
gardens,  buggies  and  carriages  running  to 
and  fro,  and  fair  faces  and  cheerful  looks 
all  around,  you  will  find  now  heaps  of  ashes 
and  ruined  buildings,  environed  by  rank 
vegetation,  poisoning  the  very  atmosphere 
with  noxious  exhalations,  and  a dreary  waste 
where  one  dare  not  go  during  broad  day- 
light without  a body  of  armed  men  to  pro- 
tect him.  The  very  house  under  the  roof 
of  which  we  enjoyed  so  many  Saturday 
evenings  with  you  in  the  edifying  and  soul- 
refreshing exercises  of  the  family  altar,  and 
in  holy  conversation,  is  a heap  of  ruins. 
My  own  self  had  a very  narrow  escape. 
Not  being  allowed  by  the  authorities  to 
have  a shelter  within  the  walls  of  the  fort, 
I was  obliged  to  remain  out,  at  the  risk  of 
my  life,  in  my  house  at  Wuzurpore,  on  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  207 


5th  of  July,  the  fearful  day  never  to  be  for- 
gotten. On  that  date  the  Neemuch  and 
other  mutineers  came  as  far  as  Shahgunge, 
about  four  miles  from  the  city,  with  the 
intention  of  attacking  us,  and  had  a fight 
there  with  the  European  troops  stationed 
here.  The  result  of  the  battle  was  not 
very  satisfactory.  Our  force  was  obliged 
to  retreat  to  the  fort,  and  though  the  muti- 
neers, as  appeared  afterwards,  were  also 
obliged  to  retreat,  yet  all  the  bungalows 
were  plundered  and  burned,  and  the  sove- 
reignty of  the  King  of  Delhi  proclaimed  for 
three  days  in  the  town. 

“Oh,  what  a horrible  spectacle  did  Agra 
present  that  night!  Almost  the  whole  of 
the  native  population  were  in  arms;  about 
four  thousand  ruffians  of  the  worst  charac- 
ter that  were  confined  in  the  great  jail,  let 
loose ; the  budmashes,  known  bad  characters, 
busy  in  plundering  the  unprotected  houses 
of  Christians;  the  fanatical  and  inhuman 
followers  of  the  false  prophet,  armed  to  the 
teeth,  like  so  many  hungry  wild  beasts, 
seeking  the  forlorn  and  inoffensive  followers 


208  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

of  the  Lamb  for  their  prey,  and  with  their 
hideous  war-cry,  ‘Allah!  Allah!’  breathing 
bloody  vengeance  against  them  and  those 
who,  moved  by  compassion,  would  dare  shel- 
ter them;  the  mutilated  remains  of  such 
Christians  as  fell  into  their  hands  exposed 
in  the  public  streets;  the  bungalows  blazing 
all  around,  as  if  to  make  ‘darkness  visible/ 
or  to  show  the  triumphs  of  him  whose  chief 
delight,  or  rather  heart’s  desire,  is  to  see 
the  ruin  of  immortal  souls.  In  short,  all 
the  chaotic  elements  of  ‘confusion  worse 
confounded’  were  called  together  to  ex- 
hibit a picture  most  detestable,  horrifying, 
and  agonizing.  I should  certainly  have 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  some  of  these  mis- 
creants, had  not  one  pundit,  Gopal  Sing,  an 
influential  Hindoo  friend  and  neighbor  of 
mine,  protected  me  in  his  house  for  some 
time,  and  then  helped  me  to  conceal  myself 
in  the  house  of  a faithful  servant  of  his,  who 
was  formerly  a chuprasse  under  me.  I was 
obliged  to  remain  three  days  and  three 
nights  in  a dirty  hut,  where  he  used  to  keep 
a pair  of  bullocks  and  boosa.  On  the  fourth 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  209 

day  I succeeded  in  finding  my  way  to  the 
fort,  where  I have  been  quite  comfortable 
and  safe  up  to  this  day.  Of  course,  as  a 
poor  native  Christian,  not  yet  sufficiently 
Anglicized,  or  rather  civilized,  by  a change 
of  dress  and,  name,  I had  my  share  of  an- 
noyance and  insults ; but  God  be  praised  for 
his  manifold  mercies,  the  least  of  which  I do 
not  deserve.  How  grateful  should  we  be 
to  the  Lord  of  Hosts  for  the  many  signal 
deliverances  vouchsafed  and  the  measure  of 
strength  given  us  during  such  times  of 
trouble!  As  a loving  Father,  he  chastises 
us  in  judgment  and  not  in  anger,  and  is  ever 
ready  to  help  us  whenever  we  call  on  him 
in  faith  and  with  an  humble  dependence  on 
his  mercies.  May  it  ever  be  our  wisdom  to 
look  up  to  him,  and  not  to  sink  under  the 
burden  of  sin  or  trial  !,J 

Surely,  after  this  letter  of  Dwarkanath 
Lahoree,  and  the  many  like  testimonies,  we 
need  not  say  that  the  gospel  has  not  been  a 
failure  in  India. 

Another  Hindoo  Christian  at  Agra  wrote 
the  following  letter,  shortly  after  the  first 
18* 


210  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

alarm  in  that  place;  and  no  one  can  help 
noting  the  manner  in  which  he  refers  to  two 
unhappy  men  who  wavered  in  the  faith  and 
denied  their  Christianity : — 

“The  Lord,  in  his  great  mercy,  has  saved 
us  all  until  now ; but  the  Mussulmans  are 
only  waiting  for  an  opportunity  to  cut-  us 
. up.  Last  Sunday  we  had  no  divine  ser- 
vice: we  were  anxiously  waiting  for  Mr.  F., 
who  was  to  administer  the  Lords  Supper 
to  us ; but,  instead  of  him,  news  came,  1 No 
service.  Fly  for  your  lives : guard  and  save 
yourselves/  We  then  took  refuge  in  the 
Press.  For  three  days  we  had  no  work. 
During  the  day  we  went  to  our  houses ; but 
at  night  we  stayed  with  our  families  at  the 
Press.  Mr.  Longden  having  procured  arms 
for  us  from  the  magazine,  we  have  armed 
ourselves,  and  kept  a regular  guard  over 
the  place.  Horrible  rumors  sometimes  quite 
discourage  us ; but  our  hope  is  in  the  Lord ; 
and  when  we  take  up  our  Bibles  and  read 
in  them, — especially  in  the  Psalms, — we  find 
great  consolation  and  rest  for  our  alarmed 
minds.  The  Mussulmans  tell  us  the  jiliad 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  211 


(religious  war)  is  now  commenced:  they 
are  gnashing  their  teeth  at  the  Christians, 
wishing  to  abolish  Christianity  from  the 
face  of  India.  Some  of  them  said,  in  our 
presence,  'We  shall  hang  your  padres  first, 
and  then  kill  you  all/  But  they  cannot  do 
this.  The  Roman  emperors  wished  the  same, 
and  they  persecuted  the  Christians  of  the 
first  century  very  much;  but  they  never 
gained  their  object : much  less  will  the  Mo- 
hammedans now.  Christianity,  being  the 
only  true  religion,  has  its  roots  firm,  and 
the  enemies  dare  not  pluck  them  up.  Kind 
father,  do  not  forget  your  flock  before  the 
throne  of  grace.  Never  take  rest  until  the 
enemies  are  put  to  shame  and  confusion. 
Do  what  Moses  did  when  the  Israelites  were 
fighting  with  the  Amalekites  : — lift  up  your 
hands  for  us. 

"Two  persons  who  have  escaped  from 
Delhi,  Rustam’s  son-in-law  and  an  East- 
Indian  Christian,  are  now  with  us;  but  the 
latter  only  came  away  on  the  denial  of  his 
faith.  Oh,  unhappy  man!  He  has  saved 
his  body,  but  destroyed  his  soul.  Christ 


212  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

says,  1 Whosoever  shall  deny  me  before  men, 
him  will  I deny  before  my  Father  and  the 
holy  angels.'  The  present  trial  has,  if  I am 
not  mistaken,  proved  the  faith  of  your  flock. 
We  are  ready,  if  necessary,  to  give  up  our 
souls  for  our  Lord.  Oh,  may  he  grant  us 
mercy,  that  we  may  live  for  him  and  die  for 
him!" 

One  of  the  most  interesting  occurrences 
in  the  history  of  the  whole  mutiny  is  that 
related  by  the  same  faithful  man,  of  a Hin- 
doo Brahmin  and  Mohammedan  woman,  who, 
in  the  very  midst  of  the  dangerous  scenes 
which  were  passing  around  them,  and  while 
the  oldest  servants  of  Christ  were  being 
“ tried  in  the  furnace  of  affliction"  and  per- 
secution, came  forward  and  boldly  avowed 
themselves  to  be  Christians,  seeking  to  be 
admitted  to  the  visible  Church  of  God.  Few 
would  select  such  an  hour  and  such  a place 
for  the  avowal  of  their  change;  but  a mys- 
terious Providence  seems  to  have  made  the 
very  horrors  which  surrounded  them  their 
chief  incitements  to  the  hazardous  though 
noble  step. 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  213 

“In  the  midst  of  these  present  disturb- 
ances/’ (says  this  Hindoo  writer,)  “when 
our  prospect  for  the  future  is  beset  with  dark 
clouds,  it  is  refreshing  to  see  a ray  of  light, 
if  ever  so  small.  Thus,  I had  the  pleasure 
to  instruct  and  prepare  two  persons  for  holy 
baptism, — a Hindoo  man  and  a Mohammedan 
woman.  The  latter  was  baptized  on  the 
12th  of  August.  She  has  been  acquainted 
with  the  way  of  salvation  and  Christian 
people  for  some  time,  and  quite  convinced 
in  her  mind  that  she  can  only  be  saved  by 
faith  in  Him  who  came  into  this  world  to 
save  sinners;  but,  for  some  cause,  she  had 
deferred  to  make  a confession  and  to  receive 
baptism.  The  present  calamities,  however, 
in  the  country,  showing  the  uncertainty  of 
human  life  and  all  the  things  of  this  world, 
roused  her  to  a sense  of  her  duty  with  re- 
gard to  her  immortal  soul;  and  she  at  once 
made  up  her  mind  to  enter  into  the  sheep- 
fold  of  Christ  ere  it  be  too  late.  She  ap- 
pears to  be  quite  sincere,  and  I trust  will 
conduct  herself  worthy  her  calling. 

“The  man  is  a young  Brahmin,  about 


214  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

twenty-four  years  old.  He  became  ac- 
quainted with  Christianity  a year  or  two 
ago,  Mien  at  Jullandhur  in  the  service  of  a 
Christian  officer.  He  had  read  a good  deal 
of  the  New  Testament  before  he  came  to  me, 
and  has  now  gone  through  a regular  course 
of  instruction  in  the  chief  truths  of  our  holy 
religion.  As  he  appeared  sincere,  and  anx- 
ious to  make  a confession  of  his  faith  in 
Christ  his  Saviour,  I baptized  him  on  the 
6th  instant.  May  the  Lord  give  him  strength 
and  grace  to  wmlk  as  a faithful  disciple  and 
soldier  of  Christ,  fighting  manfully  under 
the  banner  of  the  cross  against  Satan,  the 
world,  and  the  flesh,  and  may  ere  long 
many  more  of  his  benighted  countrymen 
imitate  his  example ! And  I confidently  hope 
the  present  crisis  will  tend  towards  breaking 
down  the  bulwarks  of  the  prince  of  dark- 
ness and  building  up  the  temple  of  Christ.” 
Agra  presented  a witness  for  the  truth 
in  one  of  the  native  preachers,  Thakur  Das, 
who  was  seized  and  carried  off  by  the  rebels, 
by  whom  he  was  urged  to  renounce  the  re- 
ligion of  Christ.  He  was  enabled  to  remain 


MAKTYKS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  215 

faithful  amidst  the  greatest  peril;  for  his 
persecutors  were  about  to  kill  him,  and 
would  have  fulfilled  their  determination  but 
for  the  defeat  of  the  10th  of  October,  when 
Thakur  Das  made  his  escape  to  Agra.  This 
good  man  has  since  had  the  pleasure  of 
resuming  his  work,  visiting  the  numerous 
villages  around  Ohitaura,  where  he  has  been 
received  with  cordial  welcome  and  allowed 
to  fulfil  his  sacred  task  without  opposition. 

TWO  ENGLISH  LADIES. 

During  the  siege  of  Lucknow,  two  Eng- 
lish ladies  experienced  in  a remarkable 
manner  the  power  of  the  divine  word  to 
yield  support  to  those  who  are  enabled  to 
lean  on  its  promises  in  the  hour  of  trial. 
The  interesting  narrative  may  already  have 
met  the  eye  of  the  reader;  but  it  is  too 
closely  related  to  our  subject  not  to  find  a 
place  in  these  pages.  If  the  ladies  of' whom 
we  have  to  speak  were  not  called  upon,  like 
the  Indian  martyrs  and  confessors,  to  wit- 
ness for  Christ  in  the  presence  of  their 
heathen  persecutors,  they  have  given  to  the 


216  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


whole  world  their  testimony  to  the  power 
of  the  u exceeding  great  and  precious  pro- 
mises" to  raise  the  believing  heart  above 
the  fear  of  “ man  that  shall  die,  and  the  son 
of  man  that  shall  be  made  as  grass."  Their 
tale  is  thus  narrated  by  one  of  the  “ cor- 
respondents" of  the  English  press: — 

“ I was  introduced  to  Mrs;  Orr  and  Miss 
Jackson,  of  whose  preservation  I wrote  you 
an  account  in  a former  letter.  They  are 
comfortably  lodged  in  a house  near  Banks’s 
bungalow;  but  they  evince  in  countenance 
and  a painful  air  of  suffering  the  effects  of 
their  long  captivity.  Their  lives  were 
spared,  indeed ; but  they  were  watched  night 
and  day  by  armed  guards,  who  did  not 
hesitate  to  use  gross  and  insulting  language 
towards  them,  and  whose  constant 'delight  it 
was  to  tell  them  of  the  outrages  and  massa- 
cres which  were  taking  place  all  over  India 
during  the  time  of  our  troubles.  Their  lives 
were  preserved  by  the  fidelity  of  the  Daro- 
gah,  or  by  his  desire  to  secure  his  personal 
safety  in  case  the  British  became  masters 
of  the  city.  Day  after  day,  before  they  were 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  217 

concealed  in  his  house,  they  lived  in  ex- 
pectation of  death.  In  the  midst  of  their 
captivity  there  was  one  source  of  consolation 
shut  to  them.  They  had  neither  Bible  nor 
Prayer-Book,  and  they  felt  the  want  exceed- 
ingly, but  they  could  not  remedy  it;  for  any 
attempt  to  procure  a religious  book  would 
not  only  have  been  unsuccessful,  but  would 
have  increased  the  severities  of  their  jail- 
ers. Meantime,  a little  child,  a Miss  Chris- 
tian, fell  sick,  and  for  several  days  they  in 
vain  sought  assistance  for  her.  At  length, 
in  a mood  of  contemptuous  pity,  the  natives 
obtained  the  service  of  a native  doctor  for 
the  dying  child ; and  this  man  sent  some  vile 
potion  or  other  wrapped  up  in  a piece  of 
paper  torn  from  the  first  book  he  could  lay 
his  hands  on,  being  the  Bible  that  had  been 
taken  from  them.  For  a moment  or  two 
the  printing  on  this  fragment  escaped  atten- 
tion; but  as  Mrs.  Orr,  now  drawing  it  from 
her  bosom,  placed*  it  before  us  with  an  air 
of  gratitude  and  reverence,  I could  well 
understand  how  it  was  that  the  words  thus 
conveyed  to  them  seemed  to  them  promises 

19 


218  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

from  heaven,  and  bade  them  hope,  and  fear 
no  more.  Of  the  fragment  thus  conveyed 
to  our  countrywomen  I have  procured  an 
exact  transcript,  which  I send  herewith.  It 
may  be  imagined  how  these  words  of  com- 
fort and  assurance  lighted  up  the  prison, — a 
handwriting  on  the  wall  in  characters  of 
fire,  to  illuminate  the  gloom  of  their  dun- 
geon : — 

“ 1 1,  even  I,  am  He  that  comforteth  you. 
Who  art  thou,  that  thou  shouldst  be  afraid 
of  a man  that  shall  die,  and  of  the  son  of 
man  that  shall  be  made  as  grass? 

“ ‘And  forgettest  the  Lord  thy  Maker, 
that  had  stretched  forth  the  heavens  and 
laid  the  foundation  of  the  earth;  and  had 
feared  continually  every  day , because  of  the 
fury  of  the  oppressor. 

“ ‘ The  captive  exile  hasteneth  that  he 
may  be  loosed,  and  that  he  should  not  die 
in  the  pit.' 

“ These  words  were  accepted  by  our  fel- 
low-countrywomen as  promises  from  heaven; 
and  from  that  time  they  hoped  on,  till  they 
were  rescued  from  the  midst  of  the  enemy." 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  219 


SEALCOTE. 

Sealcote,  in  the  Punjaub,  has  gained  for 
itself  a name  like  Pergamos,  in  the  Lesser 
Asia,  “wherein,”  the  Saviour  says,  “An- 
tipas,  my  faithful  martyr,  was  slain  among 
you,  where  Satan  dwelleth.”  The  Church 
of  Scotland  thus  laments  the  fall  of  the  Eev. 
R.  Hunter,  who,  with  his  wife  and  child, 
perished  under  the  hands  of  the  assassins. 
The  brief  missionary  course  of  Mr.  Hunter 
is  thus  described  by  his  friends : — 

“Although  met  at  the  outset  by  'nume- 
rous difficulties  and  discouragements,7  these 
were  not  by  any  means  formidable;  and  on 
the  28th  of  February  Mr.  Hunter  wrote  in 
cheering  terms  of  the  prospects  of  the  mis- 
sion. In  his  next  letter  to  the  committee, 
dated  June  9,  he  said,  'Two  months  ago 
the  country  seemed  profoundly  tranquil,  and 
bright  schemes  for  the  future  were  formed, 
not  only  by  statesmen,  but  also  by  mission- 
aries. . . . How  these  are  doomed  to  dis- 
appointment is  now  apparent.7  He  adds,  'I 
forbear  laying  before  you  our  positive  dan- 
ger,— about  fifty  Europeans  to  defend  us 


220  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


against  more  than  twelve  hundred  Sepoys. 
We  have  not  followed  the  example  of  al- 
most every  one  and  taken  refuge  in  the  fort 
of  Lahore.' 

“No  future  communication  from  Mr. 
Hunter  ever  reached  the  committee;  but 
from  an  interesting  paper  drawn  up  by  his 
brother,  who  had  also  been  a missionary  in 
India,  it  appears  that  he  wrote  again,  on  the 
12th  of  June,  that  then  only  eight  ladies 
remained  at  Sealcote,  but  that  still  Mrs. 
Hunter  held  out,  not  believing  that  they 
ought  to  go.  When  an  assault  on  Delhi 
could  not  be  attempted,  from  the  limited 
number  of  the  troops,  and  reinforcements  ' 
were  consequently  sought  from  the  Pun- 
jaub,  ‘ it  was  felt/  as  the  narrative  records, 

1 that  they  could  not  be  granted  unless  most 
of  the  remaining  Sepoy  regiments  through- 
out the  province  were  first  disarmed.'  The 
native  troops  at  Jhelum  resisted;  and  when, 
having  been  overcome,  they  were  forced  to 
flee,  many  of  them  rushed  to  Sealcote,  1 bent 
on  exciting  a mutiny  there.' 

“ ‘When  Mr.  Hunter  heard  of  the  san- 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  221 

guinary  contest  at  Jhelum,  he  felt,  at  last, 
that  it  was  his  duty  to  seek  a place  of  safety, 
and,  abandoning  the  mission-house  on  the 
8th  of  July,  went  with  his  family  to  a bun- 
galow some  distance  from  the  cantonment 
on  the  road  to  the  fort  of  Lahore,  where, 
unhappily,  he  was  persuaded  to  stay  till 
morning.  At  midnight  things  looked  threat- 
ening, and  Mr.  Hunter  resolved  to  go,  and 
again  departed  from  the  resolution.  Once 
again  he  thought  of  instant  flight,  but  once 
more  he  lingered.  Before  daybreak  of  the 
9th  the  mutiny  had  begun.  When  the 
Hunters  heard  the  firing  they  had  their  car- 
riage made  ready,  and  fled  away  from  the 
doomed  station,  till,  meeting,  it  is  believed, 
Sepoy  guards  who  had  been  posted  by  the 
mutineers  to  intercept  and  murder  all  fugi- 
tives, they  were  compelled  to  return  and 
make  for  the  fort  of  Sealcote.  As  they  were 
passing  the  jail,  around  which  many  of  the 
mutinous  cavalry  were  congregated  with 
the  view  of  releasing  the  prisoners,  Mr. 
Hunter  was  suddenly  shot  dead,  a pistol 

having  been  held  so  close  to  his  head  as  to 

19* 


222  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

scorch  his  face  with  the  powder.  The  same 
ball  passed  through  the  neck  of  Mrs.  Hun- 
ter  and  wounded  her,  though  it  is  believed 
not  mortally.  On  this  a Mussulman  jail- 
keeper  rushed  on  her  with  a sword  or 
bayonet  and  killed  both  her  and  the  child. 
The  three  bodies  were  found  next  day  about 
a mile  from  the  fort,  the  corpse  of  Mrs. 
Hunter  still  holding  with  a death-grasp  the 
murdered  baby.'  Doubtless  they  died  in 
the  faith  and  hope  of  being  forever  with  the 
Lord.” 

We  cannot  close  these  memorials  of  Chris- 
tians slain  in  the  Indian  Revolt  without 
adding  one  more  to  those  already  given. 

The  Rev.  E.  H.  Cockey  was  born  at  Fut- 
teghur,  about  1822,  and,  after  studying 
for  three  years  at  Bishops  College,  was 
appointed  catechist  in  the  Hindostani  Mis- 
sion in  Calcutta  in  1851.  He  went  to 
Cawnpore  in  1855,  and  was  ordained  at  Agra 
by  the  Bishop  of  Madras  in  1856.  He  was 
slain  at  Cawnpore.  He  is  the  “padre”  in  the 
terrible  scene  so  faithfully  depicted  by  the 
hand  of  a native  eye-witness  of  the  massacre 


MABTYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  223 


at  Cawnpore,  who  tells  us  that,  “just  as  the 
Sepoys  were  going  to  fire,  the  padre  (chap- 
lain) called  out  to  the  Nana  (Nona  Sahib)  and 
requested  leave  to  read  prayers  before  they 
died.  The  Nana  granted  it.  The  padre's 
bonds  were  unloosed  so  far  as  to  enable  him 
to  take  a small  book  out  of  his  pocket,  from 
which  he  read ; but  all  this  time  one  of  the 
Sahib  people  (the  English),  who  was  shot 
in  the  arm  and  in  the  leg,  kept  crying  out 
to  the  Sepoys,  ‘ If  you  mean  to  kill  us,  why 
don't  you  see  about  it  quickly  and  get  the 
work  done? — why  delay?'  After  the  padre 
had  read  a few  prayers  he  shut  the  book, 
and  the  Sahib  people  shook  hands  all  round. 
Then  the  Sepoys  fired.  One  Sahib  rolled 
one  way,  one  another,  as  they  sat;  but  they 
were  not  dead,  only  wounded : so  they  went 
in  and  finished  them  off  with  swords." 

Although  Cawnpore  has  acquired  a fear- 
ful celebrity  in  the  Indian  tragedy,  having 
been  the  scene  of  the  slaughter  of  nearly  a 
thousand  sufferers,  it  could  not,  from  the 
manner  in  which  this  cruelty  was  exercised, 
acquire  equal  distinction  as  the  field  of  mar- 


224  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

tyrdom.  The  victims  were  not  tested  as  to 
their  faith  and  promised  life  as  the  reward 
of  apostasy:  they  were  murdered  because 
they  were  natives  of  England,  or  the  volun- 
tary subjects  of  British  rule,  and  professors 
of  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  There  were 
found  in  the  den  in  which  they  were  slaugh- 
tered fragments  of  the  Sacred  Scriptures  and 
pious  books,  which  encourage  the  belief  that 
many  of  them,  in  the  anticipation  of  their 
dreadful  doom,  sought  support  and  consola- 
tion from  the  true  and  unfailing  source, 
“the  fountain  of  living  waters; ” But  it  was 
not  permitted  to  them  to  take  their  place  in 
the  honored  ranks  of  those  who  died  or  were 
willing  to  die  for  the  defence  of  the  gospel. 
How  many  of  them  have  died  in  the  Lord, 
having  previously  furnished  proof  that  they 
were  the  true  followers  of  Christ,  or  having, 
in  the  apprehension  of  destruction,  sought 
for  the  salvation  of  the  soul,  we  have  not 
the  means  of  telling. 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  225 


CONCLUSION. 

As  we  read  of  these  additions  to  the  noble 
army  of  martyrs  and  confessors,  we  are,  it 
may  be,  led  to  inquire  whether  we  should 
be  steadfast  if  we  had  to  pass  through  similar 
scenes  of  trial.  If  we  had  to  perish  amidst 
the  most  cruel  tortures  our  enemies  could 
invent,  or  deny  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  should 
we  follow  the  miserable  example  of  some 
who  bore  the  name  of  Christian?  Should 
we  repeat  the  Mohammedan  creed,  the 
kulma , or  do  pooja  (worship)  before  a 
miserable  idol?  or  should  we  say,  with 
Walayat  Ali,  “I  am  resolved  to  live  and  die 
a Christian’'  ? 

These  are  questions  which  it  would  be 
well  for  us  to  ask  ourselves  with  all  earnest- 
ness,— although  it  would  be  scarcely  possible 
that  we  could  give  to  them  a true  reply. 
Our  present  feeling  will  furnish  no  infallible 


226 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


test  of  our  future  fidelity.  Those  who  are 
now  apprehensive  oi  failure  in  the  trying 
hour  might  realize  the  promise,  “As  thy 
days,  so  shall  thy  strength  be;”  and  some 
who  are  ready,  with  the  too-confident  Peter, 
to  say,  “ Though  all  men  should  forsake  thee, 
yet  will  not  I,”  might  in  the  time  of  trial  deny 
that  they  ever  knew  the  Saviour.  Some  of 
those  thus  put  to  the  test  who  were  most 
timid  and  apprehensive  in  the  prospect  of 
the  fiery  trial  found  themselves  endowed 
with  the  utmost  courage  when  the  execu- 
tioners went  to  lead  them  to  the  stake; 
while  others,  who  spoke  too  confidently  of 
their  anticipated  triumphs,  were  near  falling 
away  through  the  bitter  pain  of  the  martyr’s 
death. 

It  were  better  that  we  should  ask  whether 
we  are  now  faithful  to  Christ  in  doing  what- 
soever our  hand  findeth  to  do.  If  we  are 
faithful  in  the  post  in  which  we  are  placed, 
whether  lowly  or  exalted, — if  we  are  occupy- 
ing with  the  one  or  the  ten  talents, — if  we 
have  discovered  the  special  work  for  which 
the  gifts  of  nature  and  grace  have  fitted  us, — 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  227 


if  we  are  faithfully  following  our  “ own  line 
of  things/’ — we  need  not  apprehend  that  we 
should  be  left  without  power  to  fulfil  the 
duties  or  endure  the  sufferings  that  might 
await  us  in  the  future.  It  is  the  same 
divine  principle  that  urges  the  Christian 
forward  to  his  daily  pilgrimage  along  his 
upward  path  to  heaven,  that  sustains  the 
laborious  missionary  in  his  studies,  his 
preachings,  and  his  disputations  with  the 
heathen,  that  strengthens  the  spirit  of  the 
pious  youth  when  he  is  ridiculed  and  taunted 
by  his  ungodly  fellows  in  the  warehouse,  that 
comforts  the  Christian  widow  in  her  poverty, 
and  gives  triumph  to  “ the  blessed  martyr” 
at  the  stake.  Can  we  endure  that  degree 
of  annoyance,  or  privation,  or  contempt,  and 
resistance,  that  may  be  incident  to  a Chris- 
tian profession  in  the  circumstances  in  which 
we  are  now  placed?  Or  do  we  lay  aside  our 
Christian  profession  in  the  railway-car,  in 
the  mixed  company,  in  the  haunts  of  com- 
merce, to  resume  it  only  among  those  whom 
we  know  to  be  pious  and  devoted  to  Christ  ? 

These  are  questions  worth  the  asking ; for 


228  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


they  admit  of  a correct  reply.  If  we  are 
not  faithful  in  that  which  is  least,  how  shall 
we  be  in  that  which  is  greatest?  If  we 
have  not  strength  enough  to  carry  a little 
cross,  how  shall  we  be  able  to  bear  the 
heavy  load  that  has  weighed  many  to  the 
ground  ? Many  who,  when  at  home,  called 
themselves  Christians,  denied  the  faith  as 
soon  as  they  found  it  involved  them  in 
affliction ; and  we  may  fear  that,  like  them, 
we  should  fall  in  the  trying  hour  if  we  do 
not  now,  openly  and  everywhere,  humbly, 
not  ostentatiously,  take  our  place  on  the 
Lord’s  side. 

“Array  thee  from  God’s  armory  of  light, 

In  which  Christ’s  feeblest  soldier  stands  secure ; 

Or,  rather,  his  eternal  arm  invoke, 

To  endue  thee  with  that  panoply  of  grace 
By  which  they  vanquish’d, — midst  thy  fears  and  sloth, 
Alas!  still  incomplete  nor  well  ‘put  on.’  ” 

We  ought  not  to  read  these  narratives 
without  being  stimulated  to  the  performance 
of  the  duties  of  which  they  are  calculated  to 
remind  us. 

When  we  see"  the  Hindoos  and  Moham- 


MAETYES  OF  THE  MUTINY.  229 

medans  falling  at  the  feet  of  the  Messiah 
and  presenting  to  him  their  bodies  as  a 
living  sacrifice,  ought  we  not  the  more  care- 
fully to  inquire  whether  we  are  also  his  dis- 
ciples ? The  word  of  God  has  gone  out  from 
us  to  India:  have  we  participated  in  its 
blessings  and  experienced  its  power  to 
illuminate  the  understanding  and  convert 
the  heart?  We  have  seen  faithful  mis- 
sionaries proclaiming  the  Great  Prophet, 
like  unto  Moses,  to  the  Mussulmans,  and 
not  in  vain;  for  they  have  put  aside  the 
kulma,  and,  instead  of  crying,  “ There  is  one 
God,  and  Mohammed  is  his  prophet,”  they 
have  acknowledged  Christ  to  the  glory  of  the 
Father.  We  have  seen  the  Hindoo  turn 
away  from  his  idols  and  draw  nigh  to  the 
true  God,  in  the  true  and  living  way,  having 
his  heart  sprinkled  by  the  blood  of  Christ 
and  purified  in  the  laver  of  regeneration. 
Have  I also  bowed  at  the  pierced  feet  of 
Jesus  ? Have  I cried  to  him,  as  Thomas  did, 
“ My  Lord,  and  my  God”  ? Have  I yielded 
to  the  great  command  “that  all  men  should 

honor  the  Son,  even  as  they  honor  the  Fa- 
20 


230  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 


ther”  ? Have  I recognised  the  authority 
that  says,  in  reference  to  the  Messiah, 
“Kiss  the  Son,  lest  he  be  angry,  and  ye 
perish  from  the  way,  when  his  wrath  is 
kindled  but  a little.  Blessed  are  all  they 
that  put  their  trust  in  him”? 

These  are  questions  with  which  each  of 
us  should  catechize  himself  with  the  utmost 
sincerity,  lest  our  unbelief,  contrasted  with 
the  faith  of  the  new  converts  to  whom  we 
are  sending  the  gospel,  should  furnish  an 
affecting  comment  on  the  faithful  warning 
of  Christ  to  the  Jews: — “Many  shall  come 
from  the  east  and  west,  and  shall  sit  down 
with  Abraham,  and  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  in  the 
kingdom  of  heaven.  But  the  children  of 
the  kingdom  shall  be  cast  out  into  outer 
darkness : there  shall  be  weeping  and  gnash- 
ing of  teeth.” 

You  are  perhaps  convinced,  by  the  facts 
presented  to  you,  that  the  Scriptures  and 
the  preaching  of  the  gospel  have  produced 
in  India  effects  which  have  never  been  pro- 
duced in  you  amidst  all  your  religious  pri- 
vileges, and  you  may  suspect  that  the  cause 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  231 


of  failure  is  to  be  found  in  yourself ; and  it 
will  be  well  if  this  suspicion  lead  you  to  the 
discovery  that  you  have  to  blame  yourself 
for  your  own  unbelief. 

The  converts  in  India  who  honored  the 
Lord  Jesus  in  their  lives  and  by  their  heroic 
deaths  have  given  to  his  gospel  an  amount 
of  earnest  attention  which  it  has  never  re- 
ceived from  you.  They  have  contrasted  its 
sublime  truths  with  the  absurdities  of  their 
superstition;  they  have  seen  the  difference 
between  its  holy  commandments  and  the 
vile  practices  allowed  and  enjoined  in  their 
religion;  they  have  rejoiced  in  the  messages 
of  mercy,  of  which  they  felt  their  great 
need;  they  have  been  overwhelmed  with 
the  display  of  infinite  mercy;  they  have 
perceived  in  the  divine  arrangements  an- 
nounced to  them  the  blessing  adapted  to 
the  wants  of  their  moral  nature;  they 
have  rejoiced  to  hear  that  there  is  a Holy 
Ghost,  that  he  is  given  because  Christ  is 
glorified ; and  with  all  earnestness  they  have 
sought,  and  with  all  joy  they  have  received, 
the  great  salvation.  With  you,  Christianity, 


232  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

with  all  its  teachings  and  privileges,  has  been 
a thing  of  course,  and  has  awakened  no  more 
serious  attention  than  the  sublime  scenery 
that  has  surrounded  the  Alpine  peasant  from 
the  moment  of  his  birth,  but  to  the  sense 
of  whose  beauties  his  mind  has  never 
wakened  up.  The  beautiful  in  form  and  color 
exists  around  us  in  vain,  until  the  love  of 
the  beautiful  is  enkindled  within;  and  the 
true  is  proclaimed  to  us  and  read  by  us  in 
vain,  if  there  be  no  corresponding  love  of 
the  truth  in  the  heart.  Divine  truths  will 
not  fail  to  affect  the  heart  they  shine  upon, 
as  the  polished  mirror  will  reflect  the  forms 
and  colors  before  which  it  is  placed.  You 
still  have  the  mirror  of  your  heart  veiled, 
it  may  be,  with  worldly  indifference  to  the 
gospel,  with  unbelief  or  formality;  but  let 
the  veil  be  drawn  aside  and  your  heart 
turned  to  the  truth,  and  your  soul  will  re- 
flect as  from  a glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord. 

And,  now,  is  there  not  a voice  crying  from 
the  ground  where  these  confessors  stood  and 
these  martyrs  fell, — a still,  small,  but  pene- 
trating voice,  loud  enough  to  reach  the 


MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY.  233 


Christian's  ear  and  vibrate  on  his  heart? 
Man!  woman!  child  of  God!  the  voice  of 
thy  martyred  brother  crieth  to  thee  from 
the  ground.  Let  its  cry  be  heard.  It  tells 
of  those  who  have  been  faithful  unto  death 
and  have  seized  the  palm  of  victory ; and  it 
summons  thee  to  thy  share  in  the  work  of 
the  Lord.  If  false  Christians  doubt  the  vic- 
torious power  of  the  gospel,  we  point  to 
these  true  believers,  who  were  living  “epis- 
tles of  Christ"  and  who  honored  him  even 
more  by  their  death  than  by  their  lives. 
The  duty  assigned  to  us  in  the  great  moral 
conflict  is  very  humble,  and  may  be  ren- 
dered without  danger  and  personal  suffering. 
We  have  to  pray  the  Lord  of  the  harvest 
to  thrust  out  more  laborers,  and  to  act  in  a 
manner  that  will  not  condemn  our  prayers 
as  hypocritical.  If  we  aspire  to  a fellow- 
ship with  those  who  have  died  for  Christ, 
we  must  remember  the  sacrifices  they  have 
made,  and  emulate  their  fidelity  by  the  sur- 
render of  luxury,  and,  it  may  be,  of  ease  and 
comfort,  for  the  great  cause  in  which  they 
were  willing  to  die. 


234  MARTYRS  OF  THE  MUTINY. 

0h;  may  the  blessed  work  go  on  until 
“that  day”  when  “a  man  shall  cast  his  idols 
of  silver,  and  his  idols  of  gold,  which  they 
have  made  each  one  for  himself  to  worship, 
to  the  moles  and  to  the  bats,” — until  the 
universal  reign  of  the  Prince  of  Peace,  when 
“the  wolf  and  the  lamb  shall  feed  together, 
and  the  lion  shall  eat  straw  like  the  bul- 
lock, and  dust  shall  be  the  serpent’s  meat,” 
— until  the  heavens  resound  with  the  blessed 
tidings  that  “the  kingdoms  of  this  world 
have  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and 
of  his  Christ;” — until 

; 4 One  song  employs  all  nations ; and  all  cry, 
‘Worthy  the  Lamb,  for  he  was  slain  for  us  !’ 

The  dwellers  in  the  vales  and  on  the  rocks 
Shout  to  each  other,  and  the  mountain-tops 
From  distant  mountains  catch  the  flying  joy; 

Till,  nation  after  nation  taught  the  strain, 

Earth  rolls  the  rapturous  hosanna  round.” 


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6 


